It was the last kiwi performance of the Games, and Paralympian #158 Adam Hall MNZM called on every ounce of his experience, along with steely nerves, to land a place on the podium.

Hall laid everything on the line in his second run on the slopes of the Olimpia delle Tofane to claim silver in the Men’s Slalom Standing on the final day of Milano Cortina 2026.

Competing at his sixth Paralympic Winter Games, the 38-year-old maintained his composure in the heat of battle to surge from fourth after the first run, to the second step of the podium.

It was an incredible achievement by Hall, who secured the sixth Paralympic medal of his career to draw level with Paralympian #55 Patrick Cooper as the most decorated New Zealand Winter Paralympian.

Amid falling snow, Hall had to produce a great performance to overturn the run 1 standings. Leaning on his vast experience, he let loose on the lower end of the course to post a time of 1:31.38 that would ultimately land him the silver medal.

For a visibly emotional Hall, it was another unforgettable moment in a remarkable career for the Outram-raised Wānaka-based Para alpine skier, who made his Paralympic debut at Torino 2006.

Speaking after the race he said: “I’m in a dream. I don’t know what just happened. After the first run, sitting in fourth, I just had to lay everything out there. I knew waking up to all that snow that I had to bring out that Taieri attitude that it is just an ordinary winter day. I just had to attack it and let it rip. It was years and years of experience and leaving nothing behind. Wow! What a way to come down and perform like that against such a strong field.”

Hall said it was special to have so many family and friends in the crowd, including wife Elitsa, and daughter Gracelynn. “This means so much to so many people, and to have so many family and friends here from near and far is amazing. I’d like to say thanks to the whole team who have been on this journey with me. It has been incredible, but we got the job done.”

The two-man New Zealand Paralympic Team secured a hugely impressive four top-six finishes at Milano Cortina:

Silver – Adam Hall – Men’s Slalom Standing

Fifth – Corey Peters – Men’s Giant Slalom Sitting

Fifth – Corey Peters – Men’s Downhill Sitting

Sixth – Corey Peters – Men’s Super-G Sitting

Snow Sports NZ Chief Executive Nic Cavanagh said both Hall and Peters were true legends in New Zealand sport, and it was remarkable they could remain highly competitive over such a long period of time.

“Corey and Adam are synonymous with Paralympic success. They are household names and an inspiration for future generations of adaptive athletes. Both have devoted so much of their lives to chasing success on the slopes and I hope there are many young snow sports enthusiasts out there watching their TVs and screens thinking - this is possible for me.”

“Well done to Adam on his medal, to Corey for his three top six finishes, and to the entire team in Milano Cortina who have supported them in this journey.”

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