Cooper Woods and the Australian Winter Olympics team return to Sydney airport

“I don’t think we’re going to lose momentum,” Woods said. “I think we’ve set a new belief – not just in winter sports athletes and staff and programs, but in Australia as a whole. We’re really putting winter sports on the map.

“People stayed up late supporting us and it’s not easy when you’ve got to go to work and school. We’re going to be hungry and we want more. That’s what we do as Australians.

“We’re such a small nation in winter sports, but we pack a big punch. We really hit everything out of the park. In four years’ time, there’s going to be a lot more to come.”

Woods has enjoyed himself as much as anyone since taking out the men’s moguls final. He’s also had a handful of people on social media asking if they can be his girlfriend. No marriage proposals yet, he says.

“We’ve at least got to go on a coffee date before that,” he said with a laugh. “I’ve had some pretty funny DMs [direct messages]. It’s all just a bit of fun.”

Woods will travel to his hometown of Merimbula on the NSW South Coast to celebrate with friends and family, return to Sydney for more media commitments, before gearing up for “glamour on the grid” at the Australian Grand Prix in Melbourne next week.

“I needed to enjoy the rest [on the plane]. Otherwise, I would have been cooked,” he said. “To have everyone so stoked is such an honour.”

Meanwhile, Scott managed to snap a photo in the cockpit of the plane on the way home, wearing her silver medal from the women’s aerials and the pilot’s hat. She was greeted by family members, having asked them to not travel to Italy so she could focus on competition. It paid off in a big way.

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“The fact Cooper’s still upright is impressive,” Scott said. “It’s been fun watching his journey. Just so proud. He really deserves it and super excited for him.

“I’m blown away just walking out here and hearing everyone cheering.

“We thought there’d be some people, but we didn’t think there’d be this many.

“It’s all sinking in. We’ll see where this ride takes us.”