President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva led the way as Brazil saluted skier Lucas Pinheiro Braathen who won the nation's first ever medal, a gold, at the Winter Olympics. Lula said on X that Braathen's giant slalom triumph in Bormio,

Brazil, the largest country in South America, is currently in the midst of its samba festival period. During this time, when the entire nation steps to the rhythm of passion in cities like Rio, samba moves that would further energize the people unfolded on the snowy slopes of the Italian Alps in Bormio.

Burgener’s debut with the Brazilian team this year coincided with that of Alpine ski racer Lucas Pinheiro Braathen, whose gold medal Saturday earned South America its first-ever medal in a Winter Olympics. Pinheiro Braathen until 2023 competed for Norway, switching to Brazil last season and adding his mother’s surname.

Lucas Pinheiro Braathen makes history for Brazil by clinching his nation's first Winter Olympic medal with gold in the giant slalom.

Lucas Pinheiro Braathen said it was "absolutely impossible" to try and convey his emotions after his big win

Once a racer for Norway, Pinheiro Braathen switched to Brazil, his mother's home country. In winning the Olympic giant slalom on Saturday, he earned South America's first medal at a Winter Games.

There is something surreal, and thus wonderfully Olympic, about seeing Brazil step onto the highest podium at the Winter Games. The country of samba, Copacabana beaches, and football lived as

Lucas Pinheiro Braathen enters the Winter Olympics as a legitimate medal contender in Alpine skiing, with a chance to become the first Brazilian and South American to win a Winter Olympics medal after switching allegiance from Norway.