On Friday, the opening ceremonies of the 2026 Milan Cortina Olympics will kick off and, for the first time, include simultaneous cauldron lightings in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo and athlete parades in four locations. The Games will showcase more than 2,900 athletes, in 15 venues throughout northern Italy. Some Olympians you’ll remember — and some you’ll want to know. Here are 32 U.S. Olympians to watch.
What to know: Nicknamed the “Quad God,” 21-year-old Malinin is the only skater to have successfully landed a quadruple axel in competition, and performs a record-setting seven quad jumps in his current free skate. With skills no one else on the planet can match, and a showstopping backflip just for fun, Malinin doesn’t just win titles, he dominates. A two-time world champion and winner of four consecutive national titles, he hasn’t lost a competition since 2023. — D’Arcy Maine
What to know: At 26 years old, Glenn is the oldest woman to make the U.S. team in singles in 98 years. A three-time national champion, Glenn has become famous for her triple axel and is one of just a few women capable of completing the jump. She’s expected to also compete in the team event, in addition to the individual competition. — Maine
What to know: Liu, now 20, won her first national championship at just 13 and made her Olympic debut as a 16-year-old in Beijing in 2022. After a sixth-place finish in the women’s singles event and a bronze medal at the world championships shortly after, Liu took a two-year break from the sport. She made her competitive return during the 2024-25 season — and incredibly won the world championship title in March, becoming the first American to do so since 2006. — Maine
What to know: Since the last Olympics, there has been no ice dancing team more dominant than Chock, 33, and Bates, 36. The two have won the past three world championships, in addition to all three Grand Prix Final titles and the U.S. national championships. Competing in their fourth Olympic Games together, the married duo has indicated this will likely be their final season and are the clear favorites for gold in their potential swan song. — Maine
Vonn sustained a ruptured ACL in her left knee last week during a race in Switzerland, but said she still plans to compete at the Olympics. “This would be the best comeback I’ve done so far,” Vonn said in a news conference on Tuesday. “Definitely the most dramatic.” — Roenigk
When to watch: Men’s snowboard big air finals, Saturday, Feb. 7, 12:30 p.m. ET; Men’s snowboard slopestyle finals, Wednesday, Feb. 18, 6:30 a.m. ET
When to watch: Men’s snowboardcross finals, Thursday, Feb. 12, 12:30 p.m. ET; Mixed team snowboardcross finals, Sunday, Feb. 15, 7:45 a.m. ET
When to watch: Mixed doubles bronze medal match, Tuesday, Feb. 10, 8:05 a.m. ET; Mixed doubles gold medal match, Tuesday, Feb. 10, 12:05 p.m. ET
What to know: Dropkin, 30, and Thiesse, 31, became the first American curling team to qualify for the 2026 Games behind a victory at the Olympic trials and a fifth-place finish at the 2025 world championships. The duo won the world title in 2023 — becoming the first Americans to do so in the mixed event — and now will attempt to bring the country just its third-ever Olympic curling medal and first in the mixed competition. — Maine
When to watch: Men’s freeski slopestyle finals, Tuesday, Feb. 10, 6:30 a.m. ET; Men’s freeski big air finals, Tuesday, Feb. 17, 12:30 p.m. ET
When to watch: Women’s heats 3 and 4, Saturday, Feb. 14, noon ET; Mixed team, Sunday, Feb. 15, noon ET
What to know: Irwin, 33, competed in cross-country skiing, cross-country running and track and field at Michigan Technological University, and didn’t begin training in biathlon until age 25. In her Olympic debut in 2022, her seventh-place finish in the women’s individual 15km event was the highest individual result ever for an American. Biathlon remains the only Winter Olympic sport in which the U.S. team has never won a medal — and Irwin aims to change that this year. — Van Deusen
What to know: The greatest alpine ski racer in history — Shiffrin currently holds a record 107 World Cup wins and leads the overall standings for a record sixth time — but her 2022 Olympics didn’t go to plan. She competed in six events, including all five individual disciplines, and was expected to win or medal in each. Instead, she uncharacteristically DNF’d in three of her six races and left Beijing without a medal. In the years since, she’s been unbelievably consistent, including winning six of seven World Cup slalom races this season. “There’s a lot of expectations around the Olympics.” Shiffrin, 30, said. “My job is to focus on my skiing and put expectations aside. That can be hard at the Olympic Games. That’s my challenge in the coming weeks.” — Alyssa Roenigk
What to know: Vonn, 41, can become the oldest alpine skier to win any medal at an Olympics. (In 2018, she became the oldest woman to medal in ski racing at an Olympics.) The 2010 Olympic downhill champion, Vonn has reached the podium in four of four World Cup races this season, including two wins, and leads the World Cup downhill standings. “It’s impossible not to think of how it would feel to cross the finish line [in Cortina] and be in a similar place as I was in Vancouver in 2010,” Vonn said. “But I can’t put my goals ahead of the work.”
What to know: In her 20 years with the national team, Hilary Knight has become the most decorated player in U.S. women’s hockey history and one of the most marketable faces who helped grow the game. Milan will be Knight’s fifth Olympics — the most ever for a U.S. hockey player — and as she announced last year, her last. Knight isn’t resting on laurels. The winger is still as clutch as they come. Knight led the PWHL in scoring last season, and in April, also led Team USA with nine points as she won her record 10th gold medal at the world championships. — Emily Kaplan
What to know: Edwards is set to make history as the first Black woman to represent the U.S. in Olympic hockey — and she’s going to make a huge impact. The Cleveland native switched from forward to defense, and somehow made the transition look easy. At 6-foot-1, Edwards stands out not just for her size, but for how complete her game is. As Edwards’ Wisconsin and Team USA teammate Caroline Harvey explains: “She’s the whole package. In any scenario you can trust her. With her reach she can shut down plays. Power play, she can finish.” — Kaplan
What to know: The shifty forward is suiting up for her fourth Olympics, and she hasn’t lost her best attribute: speed. In 2019, Coyne Schofield became the first woman to compete in the NHL All-Star Fastest Skater competition; she finished 7th out of 8 skaters, and just over a second behind winner Connor McDavid. The captain of the PWHL Minnesota Frost is also a pace-setter off the ice, as one of the leaders who helped usher in a new, more sustainable professional league and is constantly championing more equitable treatment for girls’ and women’s hockey. — Kaplan
What to know: The Chicago-area native is a true hockey unicorn. She leads NCAA hockey in both goals and penalty minutes. After bypassing the PWHL draft for one more year at Minnesota and a chance for a national championship, Murphy has elevated her game even more — and has found ways to agitate opponents while (mostly) staying out of the box. She went viral this season for a ridiculous assist dribbling the puck over the sticks of defenders that most players wouldn’t dare to try even in practice. Murphy is expected to be a top pick in the 2026 PWHL draft and a future face of the sport thanks to her play and personality. — Kaplan
What to know: Sometimes nicknamed the “Smash Brothers,” the sons of longtime NHL player Keith Tkachuk became the faces of USA Hockey at last year’s electric 4 Nations tournament because of their brash, unafraid personalities. While the Tkachuk brothers helped stage the memorable three fights in nine seconds to open the USA versus Canada game last February, remember that there is no fighting in Olympic hockey. Nonetheless, both agitators — who have a knack of finding their way around the net — will set the tone for the Americans. Brady is the captain of the Ottawa Senators while Matthew has won the last two Stanley Cups with the Florida Panthers. — Kaplan
What to know: For the first time since 1960, two sets of brothers will play for Team USA Hockey. Quinn, who was traded to Minnesota in an NHL blockbuster this season, is one of the Americans’ most dynamic defensemen. Jack is one of their most electric forwards. What they have in common: They are elite skaters. Keep an eye on their edgework. Hockey is in their blood: mom, Ellen Weinberg, won silver with Team USA at the 1992 world championships while dad, Jim, worked in player development for the Toronto Maple Leafs for several years as the boys were growing up. Oh, and there’s a third brother, 22-year-old Luke, who should be in the conversation for the 2030 Games. — Kaplan
What to know: With not much time and space to maneuver in this tightly checked tournament, goals should be hard to come by — and the Americans are hoping that’s the case, especially if Hellebuyck is in the net. A Michigan native who plays in Winnipeg, Hellebuyck will get the nod as USA’s starting goaltender to begin the tournament thanks to his résumé, which includes winning the Hart Trophy as NHL MVP last season. When the 32-year-old is locked in, he’s unbeatable. However, he also has his warts, including getting pulled from three playoff games last season due to poor starts. This will be a huge prove-it tournament for Hellebuyck to show he can shine in the biggest moments. — Kaplan
What to know: Kim, 25, could become the first snowboarder to win three consecutive Olympic halfpipe contests. But this gold medal won’t come easy. The three-time Olympian dislocated her right shoulder while training in Laax, Switzerland, in early January and hasn’t competed in a major final in nearly a year. During that time, a group of young riders, including 17-year-old Gaon Choi of South Korea and 16-year-old Japanese teammates Sara Shimizu and Rise Kudo have become serious threats to win their first Olympic gold. — Roenigk