The cadence of the parallel giant slalom
When I look at the images from Livigno, I see more than just an elite athlete thundering down a mountain. In my thirty years in the dance world, I have learned to read movement, and what Michelle Dekker shows there on her snowboard is, in fact, an extremely precisely executed choreography. Today, Sunday February 8, 2026, is the moment of truth for the Zoetermeer native in the parallel giant slalom. After her nerve-wracking fourth place in Beijing four years ago, you can feel in everything that this time she is going for that coveted medal.
The parallel giant slalom is perhaps the most 'dance-like' discipline of snowboarding. Two athletes whizzing down side by side, synchronized in their turns, fighting against centrifugal force. It reminds me of a tight formation dance where every fraction of a second counts. One misstep, one hiccup in your rhythm, and you're out. According to the latest updates from the NOS and De Telegraaf, Michelle is completely ready for it. The slope in Livigno is longer than average, and that is exactly where her strength lies: maintaining that flow over a longer distance.
The technique of carving: The ultimate 'leading edge'
In the dance world, we often talk about 'floor pressure' and how you shift your weight to initiate a turn. With Michelle, you see exactly the same principle, but on a steel edge in the snow. Carving — making those deep, racy turns — requires incredible core control. When she puts her board on the edge, it is comparable to a dancer standing on pointe; the balance must be perfect, otherwise you lose all grip.
What makes Michelle so special is her ability to recover without breaking her rhythm. In dance, we call that 'recovering the beat'. If she doesn't approach a gate ideally, you see her body correct with a suppleness that you only get after thousands of hours of training. She already started at the age of seven at SnowWorld Zoetermeer, and that foundation on artificial snow has given her a technical precision that is now, at her fourth Olympic Games, her greatest weapon.
From fourth place to the podium?
We all still remember that bitter fourth place in 2022. In sports, that is the most thankless position, but for a character like Michelle's, it was the fuel for this cycle towards Milan-Cortina. She hasn't been sitting still over the past few years. With a bronze medal at the 2025 World Championships and recent podium finishes in the World Cup, she shows that she belongs to the absolute world elite. She has grown from a young talent to an experienced 'performer' who knows how to keep her nerves in check.
In a recent conversation with the press, she indicated that the slope in Livigno suits her. It is technical, but not extremely steep, which means it comes down to timing and generating speed from your turns. That's where the 'swing' comes into play. You have to let the mountain do the work and go with the movement, instead of fighting against it. That is the essence of flow, something that we as dancers naturally understand very well.
What we can learn from Michelle
Although most of us would rather be on a dance floor than on a freezing mountain slope, Michelle's lessons are universal. It's about focus. When she is in the starting gate, nothing else matters anymore. That tunnel vision, that complete surrender to the task at hand, is what distinguishes a good performance from a legendary one.
Concretely, this means for us: work on that foundation. Michelle trained for years in an indoor hall in the Netherlands before she conquered the real mountains. It is the discipline to do the boring repetitions, so that at the moment the light turns green, you can blindly trust your body. In addition, her mental resilience after Beijing is an example for everyone who has ever had a setback on stage or during a competition.
The competition is cutthroat
Of course, she is not alone. The competition, with names like Ester Ledecka, is incredibly strong. Ledecka is the absolute queen of the snow, an athlete who can win gold on both skis and a snowboard. Against such powerhouses, Michelle must rise above herself. But when I look at her recent form — those second places in Simonhöhe and Bad Gastein last month — I see a woman who is no longer impressed by big names. She rides her own race, her own rhythm.
Today around 1:00 PM, the round of 16 begins and then it goes at high speed towards the medals. It is a knockout system: the winner moves on, the loser can pack their bags. That pressure is enormous, but Michelle has the experience of three previous Games in her backpack. She knows how it feels to stand there and she knows what is needed to end up on the right side of the score this time.
At Miss Salsa, we are certainly on the edge of our seats. It is wonderful to see how a Dutch woman masters such a niche part of winter sports. Whether she comes home with gold, silver, bronze or 'just' a great experience, her passion for movement on the snow is an inspiration for every athlete. Let's hope she finds that perfect run today and shows the world how you dance on a snowboard.