2026 Winter Olympics Recap

Maya Parayankuzhiyil ~  February 2026

Team USA’s hard work surely paid off at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics; here are some of the gold medal highlights.

In alpine skiing, Breezy Johnson from Jackson Hole, Wyoming, won gold in the women’s downhill. In freestyle skiing, Elizabeth Lemley from Ohio, won gold in women’s moguls and bronze in women's moguls. In speed skating, Jordan Stolz from Wisconsin, won gold in both men’s 100m and in men’s 500m. Team USA also won gold in the team event of figure skating.

On Thursday, February 19th, Alysa Liu took home the gold in the women’s single skate (free skating), skating to the song “Macarthur Park” by Donna Summer. The Women’s hockey team defeated Canada in overtime to secure the gold medal finish. This is the team’s 3rd gold medal victory since their first performance at the Olympic winter games in 1998. Since 1998, they have taken home a medal during every Olympics, highlighting how incredible the team really is! The US Men’s hockey team won gold later that week with a 2-1 victory in overtime to Canada. This marked their first gold since 1980!

Overall, the US won 12 gold medals (33 medals total), only second to Norway’s 18 gold medals (41 total medals). The 12 gold medals surpassed the US’s previous record (10 gold medals) set in 2002 at the Salt Lake City Olympics, making the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics extra special!