One of just five South African athletes to compete at the 2026 Milan Cortina Games, cross-country skier Matthew Smith's Olympic journey has been anything but typical.

Lance FredericksTHE 2026 WINTER Olympic Games in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy are drawing to a close this weekend after more than two weeks of intense competition across 16 sports and 116 medal events.

Who says serious athletes are always serious? Akwasi Frimpong, who's competed for Ghana, is a world-class wisecracker as he reflects on being a Black African athlete in the white world of winter sports.