Savely Korostelev will take part in the freestyle race at the Olympics

On Friday, February 13, skier Savely Korostelev will take part in the 10 km freestyle race at the 2026 Olympics in Italy. The competition starts at 13:45 Moscow time. The Russian is competing at the 2026 Olympic Games in a neutral status, without national symbols.

Earlier, on February 10, the athlete competed in the men's sprint classic style, showing a result of 3 min 19.88 s. At the end of the race, he took 35th place.

The skier will also take part in the 50 km classic style mass start on February 21.

The Russian made his Olympic debut in Italy on February 8 in the men's 20 km skiathlon. The athletes covered 10 km of the track in classic style and 10 km in free style. Korostelev came in fourth, being one step away from victory. He was only 1.5 seconds away from bronze. Despite the unfortunate blunder, TV commentator Dmitry Guberniev called this result worthy.

The Daring skier: how Savely Korostelev made his way to the international starts and the 2026 Olympics

Biography of an athlete with a neutral status at the 2026 Olympics

Savely Korostelev was born on November 30, 2003 in Perm in a family of famous skiers — among his relatives there are world champions and Olympic medalists. He started skiing since childhood: At first, he studied under the guidance of his grandparents, and later joined the coach of the Russian junior national ski team, Alexander Kravchenko.

At the junior level, Korostelev won the World Cup twice and repeatedly became the winner and prize-winner of the stages of the Cup of Russia. In December 2025, he was the first Russian skier to return to the World Cup in a neutral status. The athlete specializes in classical style, sprint disciplines and relay races.