Every four years, athletes come together from around the world to compete in their respective sports at the Olympic Games. The Games originated in Ancient Greece around 3,000 years ago, where sports contests were held every four years in Olympia. In 1896, the Olympic Games finally returned for the first time in the modern era in Athens, Greece.
This was the summer edition of the Games, though. The first-ever Winter Olympics was held in 1924 in Chamonix, France. 102 years later, the 25th edition of the Winter Games has now been held in 2026 in Italy. Co-hosted by two cities, Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, the Games just wrapped up after over two weeks of exciting competition.
This year’s Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games included the most widespread lineup of sports the event has ever seen. The Olympic Games contained 16 sports, each with multiple events and specialties within them. The Paralympic Games also added six more sports, including Para Ice Hockey, Wheelchair Curling and Para Alpine Skiing.
Starting it off on the ice, four staples of the Winter Games can be found. These include figure skating, ice hockey, curling and speed skating. All four of the sports are fan-favorites and attract large crowds every four years.
Ellie Fisher (11) said that she kept up with a lot of the Games and loved watching figure skating.
“My favorite event would definitely have to be the figure skating,” Fisher said. “This is because of how impressive and difficult all their turns and jumps are.”
Another section of ice sports featured in the Games, though, was found on the long, winding courses at the Cortina Sliding Centre. Here, the sports competed in included Bobsleigh, Luge and Skeleton. Bobsleigh puts athletes in either teams of two or four in a specialized sled, while luge and skeleton are both only one-person sports. Luge athletes ride on their backs, though, feet-first, while those in skeleton go down head-first on their stomach. All three of these sports are sent down a long, icy track, full of twists and turns and reach speeds of up to 95 mph.
A final section of the Winter Olympics is the snow section. This is a broad category consisting of a wide selection of events. Some longer events include Cross-Country Skiing, Alpine Skiing, Biathlon, Nordic Combined and the newly introduced sport Ski Mountaineering. Certain sports in this category are shorter, though, and often include more tricks and speed. These sports include Snowboard, Ski Jumping and Freestyle Skiing, each containing multiple disciplines within them.
Javontai Briggs (10) enjoyed watching this year’s Games and noted that ski jumping was his favorite to watch.
“It’s exciting and kind of scary all at the same time,” Briggs said. “When the skiers go down the huge ramp, they look so calm, but you know they have so much adrenaline.”
Team USA experienced some ups and downs over the course of the Games, but in the end, they showed up in many different ways and ended up placing second overall in the medal count. A total of 33 medals were won by the stars and stripes, 12 of which were gold.
U.S. athletes in Freestyle Skiing won eight of the team’s medals. Three golds were won in all by Elizabeth Lemley in Women’s Moguls, Alex Ferreira in Men’s Freeski Halfpipe and a group of athletes in Mixed Team Aerials. Two victories also came in Women’s Alpine Skiing, one from Breezy Johnson in Downhill and one from Mikaela Shiffrin in Slalom.
In Bobsleigh, Elana Taylor Meyers triumphed for America in Women’s Monobob. Jordan Stolz, a speed skater, won not one, but two golds for the team in the 500-meter and the 1,000-meter races. The U.S. Hockey teams also dominated near the end of the Games. Both the men’s and women’s teams went on incredible runs and overcame numerous tough challenges. In a wild turn of events, both teams defeated Canada 2-1, and both games went into an intense overtime.
The American Figure Skating Team made a lot of noise at Milano Cortina as well. They started off the Games strong by taking home gold in the Team Event. Near the end of the Games, gold was won again, this time by Alysa Liu in Women’s Single Skating. Liu had suddenly retired from the sport at the age of 16 after rising up as a child prodigy, but she returned to the ice and began her incredible comeback at 19 years old. She can now add Olympic Gold Medalist to her resume at only 20 years old.
Ilia Malinin was also on the Figure Skating Team and was poised for a big Olympics, but the star sadly struggled under the pressure and couldn’t deliver on all the hype that had been put on him.
In a post on X, former American Olympic gold medalist figure skater Scott Hamilton said that he trusts in Malinin, though, and urges him and others to push through any struggles.
“One performance should never define anyone. A good or a disappointing one,” Hamilton said. “I know he will respond with strength, courage, and dignity.”
Milano Cortina 2026 officially came to a close on Feb. 22, saying goodbye to all the exciting and awe-inspiring moments that came with it. Look forward to 2030, where the next Winter Olympics will be held in the French Alps.
