The 2026 Winter Olympics are in the books, and as the Olympic flame dimmed in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, the medal table told the story of a Games defined by redemption and resilience. The United States finished second in total medals behind Norway, which totaled a historic 41 medals, including 18 golds. But beyond the numbers, these Games will be remembered for their culturally defining moments.
Here are several standout moments from Milano Cortina 2026.
USA Hockey Ends the Drought
When NHL players returned to Olympic competition for the first time in over a decade, expectations skyrocketed, especially for a U.S. team eager to reclaim its place atop the hockey world.
In a gold medal showdown against Canada, the Americans delivered.
As Jack Hughes, who hit the game-winning goal, put it after the final horn, “We wanted to go through Canada and beat them.”
The victory carried historical weight. Since the “Miracle on Ice” in 1980, U.S. Olympic hockey glory has felt sporadic and elusive. This gold didn’t rewrite 1980, but it reminded fans that American hockey can still stand toe-to-toe with its northern rival on the biggest stage.
Hughes didn’t mince words when praising goalkeeper Connor Hellebuyck, who had a legendary performance, stopping 41 of 42 shots against Canada.
“He was our best player today by a mile,” Hughes said. “That was a ballsy, gutsy win. That’s American hockey right there.”
The return of NHL talent elevated the tournament’s intensity, and the U.S.-Canada final instantly became one of the defining moments of the Games. For American hockey, it felt like a generational exhale.
Alysa Liu’s Golden Statement
If U.S. hockey’s gold was about reclaiming tradition, Alysa Liu’s was about reclaiming identity.
Her victory in the women’s free skate marked the first women’s Olympic figure skating gold for the U.S. in 24 years. In a sport often defined by strict expectations and image control, Liu made it clear she was skating on her own terms.
“No one tells me what I’m gonna wear. No one tells me how my hair is gonna be. No one’s gonna try to change me,” Liu said to the Cosmopolitan in Jan. 2026. “I don’t need this. But what I needed was a stage, and I got that. So I was all good, no matter what. If I fell on every jump, I would still be wearing this dress, so it’s all good.”
That mindset showed. Liu skated freely and confidently, and when the scores came in, history was made.
“[Do] stuff that people tell you you shouldn’t do,” Liu said to The Athletic. “I’ve been doing a lot of that.”
For a generation of young American skaters who grew up watching international dominance elsewhere, Liu’s gold felt bigger than a medal. She had retired from the sport at 16, stepping away from the spotlight before rediscovering her love for skating and returning to the Olympic stage in one of the most unlikely comebacks in recent Games memory.
Silver, But Smiles
Coming into Milano Cortina, Chloe Kim and Eileen Gu were gold medal favorites in snowboarding and skiing, respectively. Both, coming off golds in previous Olympic Games, carried superstar status into Italy.
Instead, they walked away with silver medals.
In snowboarding, Kim was edged out for gold by South Korea’s rising star, Choi Gaon, who delivered a near-flawless final run under immense pressure. In freestyle skiing, Gu added yet another medal to her already historic collection, even if it wasn’t the color many predicted.
But if there was disappointment, you couldn’t see it on their faces.
“I’m the most decorated female freeskier in history,” Gu said in response to a reporter asking if her gold medals were “lost.” “I think that’s an answer in and of itself. How do I say this? Winning a medal at the Olympics is a life-changing experience for every athlete. Doing it five times is exponentially harder… I think it’s kind of a ridiculous perspective to take.”
For Kim and Gu, silver carried clarity, not disappointment. In a high-pressure Olympic atmosphere, their joy on the podium was a reminder that athletic prowess is defined as much by longevity as it is by one-off shows of dominance.
The Curling Controversy That Wouldn’t Melt
No Olympics is complete without drama, and this year it arrived on the curling sheet.
In a men’s curling preliminary match against Sweden, Canada found itself at the center of a controversy involving alleged gamesmanship based on how they released the curling stone. This accusation sparked heated exchanges and scrutiny from officials, but the Canadians advanced and ultimately claimed gold.
“I’ve curled my whole life, never once with the intention of getting an advantage through cheating,” Canada’s Marc Kennedy said after the match. “So when [my integrity] gets attacked, I get my back up and get a little bit aggressive.”
“I could have handled it better. No question,” Kennedy said of his refusal to apologize to Sweden’s Oskar Eriksson.
The episode highlighted how even a sport built on etiquette and precision can erupt under Olympic pressure. That Canada won gold despite purported gamesmanship only intensified the controversy, which has yet to fully melt.
