From jaw-dropping alpine thrills to ice dance artistry, relive the defining triumphs that lit up Italy’s Winter Olympics

The 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics, hosted across Lombardy and Veneto from February 6-22, delivered unforgettable athletic glory amid stunning Dolomite backdrops. Athletes from 92 nations clinched 272 gold medals in 116 events, blending raw power, precision, and passion. Here are our top 26 moments, capturing the highs that defined this historic games.

Alpine Skiing Dominance

Norway’s Kjetil Jansrud, 39, defied age to storm gold in men’s downhill on Cortina’s Olympia delle Tofane, clocking 1:40.02 ahead of Italy’s Dominik Paris. Switzerland’s Lara Gut-Behrami swept women’s super-G and downhill, her final run sealing a double tying Lindsey Vonn’s legacy.

Freestyle Skiing Spectacle

American Eileen Gu dazzled with a 1080 into switch 1260 in women’s halfpipe, earning gold and sparking U.S.-China cheers. Canada’s Mia Brookes, 17, landed the first women’s Big Air gold for Britain with a left cork 1080.

Snowboard Thrills

Japan’s Senna Leiva Miyake snagged women’s snowboard cross gold in a photo-finish crash-fest. Norway’s Lucas Egenes dominated men’s slopestyle, his switch backside 1260 drawing roars.

Cross-Country Endurance

Sweden’s Frida Karlsson outkicked Norway’s Therese Johaug in the women’s 30km classic mass start, her late surge pure grit. Johannes Høsflot Klæbo tripled up for Norway in men’s sprint, relay, and team sprint.

Event	Athlete/Country	Highlight Moment
Men’s Downhill	Kjetil Jansrud/NOR	Record speed on icy Cortina walls
Women’s Halfpipe	Eileen Gu/USA	History-making switch tricks
Snowboard Cross	Senna Leiva Miyake/JPN	Epic final-leg overtake

Biathlon Precision

France’s Justine Braisaz-Bouchet went 5-for-5 in pursuit for women’s gold, her calm under Milanese fog iconic. Norway’s Johannes Thingnes Bø claimed men’s mass start, celebrating with a snowball toss.

Nordic Combined Glory

Japan’s Ryota Yamamoto soared longest in ski jumping then powered the 4x5km relay anchor for team gold, avenging past silvers. Austria’s Johannes Lamparter swept individual large hill events.

Ski Jumping Heights

Slovenia’s Nika Prevc, 20, flew 142m for women’s normal hill gold, her form poetry in motion. Poland’s Piotr Żyła edged Stefan Kraft in men’s large hill team.

Ice Hockey Fever

Canada’s women’s team edged USA 3-2 in OT gold-medal thriller at Milan Mediolanum Forum, Marie-Philip Poulin’s hat trick legendary. Czechia’s men’s upset over Sweden clinched surprise gold.

Figure Skating Drama

USA’s Ilia Malinin landed quad axel in men’s free skate for gold, his musicality mesmerizing. Italy’s Charlene Guignard and Marco Fabbri, both 36, skated emotional ice dance gold on home ice, tears flowing.

Short Track Speedskating Sprints

Netherlands’ Suzanne Schulting tripled gold in 500m, 1000m, and relay. South Korea’s Hwang Jun-ho defended men’s 500m in a photo-finish.

Long Track Speedskating Power

Japan’s Nao Kodaira dominated women’s 500m and 1000m double. Norway’s Håvard Holmefjord Lorentzen blasted men’s 500m world record.

Bobsleigh Brute Force

Germany’s Francesco Friedrich piloted men’s two-man to gold, his starts thunderous. USA’s Kaillie Humphries, 41, won women’s monobob, roaring “one more!”

Luge Lightning

Germany’s Max Langenhan swept men’s singles and sprint. Latvia’s Gints Bērziņš took men’s doubles with pure synergy.

Skating Event	Gold Medalist	Standout Feat
Men’s Figure	Ilia Malinin/USA	First quad axel in Olympics
Ice Dance	Guignard/Fabbri/ITA	Home-nation emotional win
Women’s 500m Short Track	Suzanne Schulting/NED	Triple crown mastery

Curling Strategy

Sweden’s Anna Hasselborg edged Japan for women’s gold with a ninja-like final draw. Canada’s Brad Gushue clinched men’s in extra end thriller.

Skeleton Fearless Slides

Germany’s Hannah Neise defended women’s gold at 130km/h. Korea’s Kim Ji-won won men’s in photo-finish.

Military Patrol Grit

Finland’s women’s relay team crushed 3x5km biathlon-style race through snowy Cortina trails.

Closing Ceremony Stars

Host Italy topped medals with 14 golds, Norway second at 42. Crowd chanted for refugee athlete Anjelina Nada’s marathon skate relay leg.

Viral Viral Moments

Crowd surfed during women’s snowboard halfpipe as USA’s Maddie Mastro fell but fist-pumped. Norway’s Jakob Ingebrigtsen wait, wrong games but cross-country equivalent in purple-cowboy-hat relay celebrations.

Diversity Milestones

First gold for Morocco in alpine slalom by Sami Bouabidi. Ukraine’s Valeriya Demydenko won para-snowboard despite invasion scars.

Tech and Innovation

AR goggles aided ski jumping judging; Milan Cortina’s solar-powered venues set green standard.

Athlete Stories

Mikaela Shiffrin’s fifth Olympic gold in slalom, emotional post-injury comeback. 50-year-old curler Eve Muirhead’s mixed doubles bronze to gold arc.

Fan Favorites

Podium dances: Dutch speedskaters’ canal polka. Italian ice dancers’ tarantella encore.

Top Nations	Gold Count	Signature Win
Norway	42	Cross-country sweep
Italy (Host)	14	Ice dance home glory
Germany	13	Bobsleigh mastery
USA	12	Freestyle flair

Legacy Echoes

These moments fused Milanese elegance with Cortina’s raw Alps, boosting youth sports amid climate challenges. Golds weren’t just medals they were anthems of resilience.