WASHINGTON — Breezy Johnson, an American skier, clinched the first gold medal for Team USA at the 2026 Olympics, only to witness her prize break shortly after.

The 30-year-old Idaho native became the second American woman ever to triumph in the Olympic downhill event, clocking in at 1 minute and 36.10 seconds. She narrowly edged out Germany’s Emma Aicher by a mere 0.04 seconds. Italy’s Sofia Goggia, who took gold in 2018 and silver in 2022, earned the bronze.

Following her victory, Johnson was enthusiastically celebrating when her gold medal detached from its ribbon.

The medal’s top component, designed to hold the ribbon, unexpectedly broke.

“It’s definitely heavier than I anticipated,” Johnson shared with reporters. “I think that might be why it broke.”

It turns out she’s not the only member of Team USA dealing with this issue. Figure skater Alysa Liu posted on her Instagram a video of her gold medal from the team event without the ribbon. 

Johnson was just the sixth racer of the day and found speed with a risk-taking trip along the iconic Olympia delle Tofana course on a sunny day in Cortina. She felt confident it was good enough for a medal, but not as sure if it would be gold.

“But I hoped that it would be enough,” she said. “I just tried to keep it rolling. I knew it was fast in some of the places where I made mistakes. I was like, ‘Did I just make a mistake or did I make a mistake because I was going fast?’ That’s the line that you’re always trying to walk, and today was enough.”

Johnson won her medal on a day marred by the crash of her teammate Lindsey Vonn, who was the first U.S. skier to win the women’s downhill. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report.