Let the Games Begin: Must-See Women Athletes in the Winter Olympics
- Alyssa Klauminzer
- 25 minutes ago
- 6 min read
The 2026 Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony took place yesterday, which means the Games have officially begun! Support women in sports by watching the most anticipated athletes competing in Milan and Cortina.
The USA's Figure Skating Triple Threat
Team USA's trio of figure skaters, Amber Glenn, Alysa Liu, and Isabeau Levito are ready to put on a show in the women's singles. Glenn, the reigning three-time U.S. champion, is competing in her first Olympics; at the age of 26, she is the oldest American women's singles skater at the Olympics since 1928. Liu came out of retirement and is now the reigning World champion and U.S. silver medalist in singles, and will be competing in her second Olympics with a good chance to win her first Olympic medal. Levito, whose mom is from Milan, is the 2026 U.S. bronze medalist and 2024 World silver medalist, will be competing in her first Olympics at 18-years-old.
USA Hockey's Dominance
If the 2025 World Championships and Rivalry Series taught us one thing, it's that Team USA is a force to be reckoned with. The Americans won silver in 2022, falling 3-2 to the Canadians. But in last year's World Championships, the USA beat Canada 4-3 in overtime, and in the Rivalry Series just a couple of short months ago, the USA dominated Canada and outscored them 24-7 across four games. Even if Canada was holding back in the tournament, the USA will be the favorite to win gold in women's hockey at this year's Olympic Games.
Key athletes to watch on Team USA this Olympics are Captain Hilary Knight (Seattle Torrent), Taylor Heise (Minnesota Frost), Laila Edwards (University of Wisconsin), and Aerin Frankel (Boston Fleet). Knight will be playing in her fifth and final Olympics; in her international career, she's won 15 World medals (10 gold) and four Olympic medals (including the gold in 2018) and will be looking to lead the USA to gold one more time. Taylor Heise, a four-time World medalist on Team USA and two-time Walter Cup champion with the Frost, led the Rivalry Series in points, with one goal and eight assists, and will make a big impact in playmaking in her first Olympics. Edwards is a great scoring defender and had a great Rivalry Series, scoring two goals and recording four assists, and she is making history as the first Black woman on Team USA's Olympic hockey team. Frankel is one of the best goalies in the PWHL and was elite in the Rivalry Series with a 1.00 goals-against average and a 0.961 save percentage against the Canadians; the five-time World medalist will be the starting goalie for the Americans.
Emily Harrop Looks to Become First Olympic Ski Mountaineering Champion
For the first time since 2022, the Winter Olympics are debuting a new discipline. Ski mountaineering, also known as "skimo," will be featured in the Olympics for the first time, with sprint and mixed relay events. Emily Harrop of France will be a favorite to win the first Olympic gold in skimo. She's won six world medals, with three coming just last year with a gold in the mixed relay, silver in the sprint, and bronze in the individual race.
On her website, Harrop said her ultimate goal is "[a]n Olympic medal at the 2026 Olympics to celebrate ski mountaineering's first appearance at the event."
One of the Best Ski Jumpers Ever Makes her Olympics Debut
Slovenia's Nika Prevc is heading into only her first Olympics, but she's already one of the most successful ski jumpers of all time. The 20-year-old is the reigning World Champion in the individual normal hill and the individual large hill. Prevc has won 35 individual World Cup events, holds the record for most points won in a women's World Cup season with 1,933, and shares the record for most consecutive wins at 10 and total wins at 15 in a World Cup season. With the women's large hill event being added to the Olympics for the first time, Prevc will be a favorite to win the first Olympic gold medal in the event.
She and her older brother, fellow World Champion ski jumper Domen Prevc, were flag bearers for Slovenia in yesterday's opening ceremony.
Chloe Kim Goes for the Three-Peat
Chloe Kim, one of the best snowboarders in history, won the 2018 and 2022 Olympic gold medals in the halfpipe and has the chance to become the first athlete to three-peat in the event. Kim took a mental health break following the last Olympics. She's now prioritizing enjoying the sport which has allowed her to continue dominating the sport while also having fun, and her 2025 World title proves this.
NBC Olympics wrote about Kim's journey to her third Olympics: "She has emphasized enjoying her time snowboarding, going back to fun tricks from her childhood, and re-establishing her identity outside her scores. The new approach has allowed Kim to enjoy competitions and maintain a healthy relationship with her success as she eyes third Olympic gold at the 2026 Winter Games."
The Best Freestyle Skier is Ready for Gold Again
Eileen Gu, representing China at the Olympics, won gold in the big air and halfpipe and bronze in the slopestyle at the 2022 Olympics at just 18-years-old. She won gold medals in the halfpipe and slopestyle in the 2025-26 World Cup, bringing her total World Cup victories to 20, the most for any freestyle skier ever. Gu will be competing in the big air, halfpipe, and slopestyle again this year, looking to defend her two golds and win one in slopestyle too.
Lindsey Vonn's Return Amid Setbacks
Nothing can stop Lindsey Vonn. Not even a knee replacement and a torn ACL.
Vonn, a three-time Olympic medalist, including the gold in the 2010 downhill, came out of retirement in 2024 and made her sixth Olympic team. She recently crashed in a race and tore her ACL but still has plans to compete in the Olympics. Upon competing, she will become the oldest woman to compete in alpine skiing at the Olympics at 41-years-old (she was the oldest to medal at the Olympics at 33-years-old in 2018).
"I'm still here. I think I'm still able to fight. I think I'm still able to try. And I will try as long as I have the ability to, I will not go home regretting not trying," Vonn said. "I will do everything in my power to be in that starting gate."
Mia Brookes is Just Getting Started
Great Britain's Mia Brookes is ready to take the competition by storm in the snowboarding big air and slopestyle events. Brookes, only 19-years-old, has already found a lot of success in her senior career. In 2023, she was the youngest ever snowboard champion at 16, and the first Briton to win a world title in the snowboard slopestyle. Brookes is the reigning X Games slopestyle champion and has three X Games medals in the event, and she has three big air and one slopestyle World Cup victories. Brookes will be a favorite to medal and is a must-watch athlete in the big air and slopestyle.
Hallie Clarke Makes her Olympic Dreams Come True
At just 19-years-old in 2024, Hallie Clarke became the youngest athlete to win the senior World Championships title in the skeleton. She also became the first athlete to hold junior and senior World titles simultaneously. Clarke was an alternate for the 2022 Olympics, and with her rapid rise in the sport, she'll have a great chance to win a medal.
"It's hard to describe just how much this means to me," Clarke wrote in an Instagram post after making the Canadian Olympic team. "It has been my dream to go to the Olympics ever since I was a little girl watching figure skating in 2010. The sport changed, but the dream never did. A whole life's worth of hard work, success, setbacks, and sacrifice have made the dream come true. I can't wait to do everything I can to make Canada proud."
Don't miss a second of the action in Italy! Tune in to every event live on Peacock and check here for the full list of events.
Comment below the athletes you're most excited to watch this Olympics!
Edited by Mithzi Silva