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Olympics 2026: Meet the Team USA Athletes Going for Gold in the Milan Cortina Winter Games
This year’s Winter Games had no shortage of game changers.
As the top athletes from across the world gathered in the Italian cities of Milan and Cortina for the 2026 Olympics, many longstanding records were put to the test—but some rising stars managed to make history in their own ways.
Among the notable competitors who called Olympic Village home for the duration of the sporting event was Laila Edwards, who became the first Black woman to compete for Team USA in Olympic hockey. In fact, she and her teammates ultimately took home gold after defeating Team Canada 2-1 during their Feb. 19 faceoff.
“To have that ability to be a role model and hear that people are looking up to me,” Laila, 22, said in an interview with ESPN published Feb. 4. “I take that with a lot of pride and gratitude.”
Alpine skier Tallulah Proulx also broke barriers in her own right as the first woman to represent the Philippines in the Winter Games. And like Laila, the 17-year-old set out to affect young spectators who may not have otherwise seen themselves represented on the slopes.
“It’s so cool to represent this part of my heritage, especially somewhere where winter sports aren’t very well known,” Tallulah—who holds dual citizenship in the US and Philippines—told TownLift in an interview published Feb. 2. “I hope I can inspire other Filipinos, especially those living abroad, to get involved in winter sports.”
RvS.Media/Monika Majer/Getty Images
The 2026 Games also saw record LGBTQ+ representation with at least 44 openly queer athletes participating, according to OutSports.com. In fact, Team USA's Amber Glenn—who won a gold medal at the Olympic team figure skating event—emphasized that coming out was a key component to her success in the sport.
“No matter how hard I tried, I just did not fit into the mold,” she told NBC News in an article published in January. “Eventually I realized if I’m going to keep doing this, I want to at least do it as me, because I’m not going to fit into this mold.”
And that's not all the history that was made throughout the Winter Games. For more landmark moments from the 2026 Olympics, keep reading.
Sarah Stier/Getty Images
Johannes Høsflot Klæbo
The Norwegian cross-country skier earned six gold medals at the 2026 Olympics, bringing his career total to 11 and making him the most-awarded gold medalist in Winter Games history.
Jiang Qiming/China News Service/VCG via Getty Images
Jordan Stolz
The American speed skater didn't just earn gold in the men's 1000m, he also set a new Olympic record with a time of 1:06.28.
(Days later, he set yet another Olympic speed skating record.)
Hu Huhu/Xinhua via Getty Images
Pinheiro Braathen
The ski racer danced his way into the history books when he won Olympic gold. Not only did the medal mark Brazil's first Winter Games medal in history, but it was also the first for all of South America.
Ian MacNicol/Getty Images
Chloe Kim
With her silver medal win in the women's snowboarding halfpipe, the Team USA athelete became the first woman to win three consecutive medals in the event.
She also became the first female snowboarder to land a cab double 1080 in an Olympic halfpipe final.
Bruce Bennett/Getty Images
Laila Edwards
The 22-year-old is the first Black woman to play for Team USA women's hockey at the Olympics.
Alex Slitz/Getty Images
Regina Martínez Lorenzo
The cross-country skier is the first woman to represent Mexico in the sport at the Olympics.
François-Xavier MARIT / AFP via Getty Images
Cory Thiesse & Korey Dropkin
The Americans earned the Unites States' first medal in mixed doubles curling with their silver medal finish.
Al Bello/Getty Images
Nicole Burger
The skeleton athlete is the first South African woman to represent her country in the event at the Olympics.
Federica Vanzetta/Nordic Focus/Getty Images
Ben Ogden
The Team USA cross-country skier ended a 50-year medal drought for the United States in the men’s sprint classical race when he picked up a silver medal.
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