Milestones on the Road to Milano Cortina 2026

The journey to qualify for the Olympic Winter Games Milano-Cortina 2026 has started for Team USA across the Olympic sports landscape. Officially, 116 medals will be awarded during the Games, seven more than were awarded during the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022. If the 2025 winter season was any indication, Team USA is in line to scoop up a major percentage of the hardware.

Below is a list highlighting the top moments from American athletes across all 16 sports on the Olympic program from the 2025 winter season:

Mikaela Shiffrin Hits the Century Mark

• The U.S. alpine skiing team was loaded with storylines this season, including Lauren Macuga’s breakout year and Lindsey Vonn’s comeback and first podium finish in over 2,000 days. However, the top moment goes to the undisputed greatest skier of all time. Shiffrin notched career win number 100 early in the season, more than any other skier in the world. She also notched her 101st career victory on home soil to end the season.

Campbell Wright's Worlds

• 22-year-old Campbell Wright, who grew up in New Zealand, put the world on notice that U.S. Biathlon will be Olympic medal contenders after collecting two silver medals at the 2025 Biathlon World Championships. His silver in the men’s sprint is the first-ever by a U.S. male athlete, and his double-medal performance marked the first time a U.S. athlete secured multiple medals at a single world championship.

Kaysha Love is a Monobob World Champion

• In just her second full season as a pilot, Utah native and former NCAA track athlete Kaysha Love secured gold at the 2025 IBSF World Championships in women’s monobob. The 27-year-old should be one of the top picks to win a monobob medal in 2026.

Jessie Diggins' Dominance Continues

• Although already in the U.S. cross-country history books, Minnesota native Jessie Diggins added a third FIS Crystal Globe to her collection this season. She is the only non-European to have won a Crystal Globe in the sport’s history.

"Cory and Korey" are on the Verge of Qualifying for 2026

• The mixed doubles curling pair of Cory Thiesse and Korey Dropkin won the U.S. Mixed Doubles Curling Trials earlier this year, earning the right to represent Team USA at the world championships. A quality finish at worlds means that the duo would become the first two U.S. athletes to officially qualify for the Olympic Winter Games Milano-Cortina 2026.

A Golden Start and a Golden Finish

• A season that started with Amber Glenn going undefeated at her Grand Prix events ended with Alysa Liu, Ilia Malinin and the ice dance pair of Madison Chock and Evan Bates all claiming gold at the 2025 World Figure Skating Championships. The feat marked the first time in history Team USA won three gold medals at a single World Championships. Chock and Bates also became the first American ice dance pair to win three straight world titles.

Jaelin Kauf Becomes Moguls Royalty

• Although freestyle skiing encompasses several teams, the top moment across any team has to be Jaelin Kauf etching her name into moguls history. The 2022 Olympic silver medalist became the first U.S. skier in history to win an FIS Crystal Globe in all three moguls disciplines (singles, duals and overall) in a single season.

Hilary Knight's Legend Grows

• One of the best hockey players in history continues to add historic milestones to her hall-of-fame worthy resume. Longtime Team USA Captain Hilary Knight recently became the all-time leader in goals (67), assists (50) and points (117) in IIHF World Championship games this April. Additionally, she also currently leads the PWHL in points as Captain of the Boston Fleet.

Emily Sweeney Makes Worlds History

• It has been a busy year for USA Luge’s Emily Sweeney. In between competing at world cup events, she has been building a house with her fiancé, Italian luge athlete Dominik Fischnaller, in his home country. However, that has not stopped her from maintaining her status as one of the best lugers in the world. She secured a bronze medal at the 2025 World Luge Championships, becoming just the second-ever American to own multiple career world championship medals.

Alexa Brabec Puts the World on Notice

• Although Nordic Combined has not historically been Team USA’s strongest discipline, Alexa Brabec and the women's team are looking to change that narrative. The 20-year-old from Steamboat Springs, Colorado, finished just off the Women’s Normal Hill Mass Start podium in fourth place at the 2025 world championships. The U.S. Nordic combined team is one of several national teams that are fighting to be included in the Olympic program in the future.

Kristen Santos-Griswold's First Globe

• After years of collecting podium finishes and hovering around the top of the overall short-track standings, Kristen Santos-Griswold finally broke through and claimed her first career crystal globe. The Connecticut native became just the third American to win the title, joining Katherine Reutter and three-time winner Apolo Ohno.

Mystique Ro Collects Worlds Silver

• 2022 World Push champion Mystique Ro secured silver during the 2025 world championships on home ice at the famed track in Lake Placid, New York. The medal marked the first time Team USA took home a medal at the world championships since 2013. Ro and Austin Florian also secured gold in the mixed team event, which will make its Olympic debut in 2026.

Tate Franz's Top 10s

• The young U.S. Ski Jumping team is looking to make waves in the sport, as 20-year-old Tate Franz collected three Top 10 finishes this year in World Cup events.

Team USA Finishes Sixth in Nations Rankings

• Ski Mountaineering, the lone new sport on the 2026 Olympic program, combines cross-country skiing and backwoods trail running. The U.S. squad is hoping a strong sixth-place finish at the 2025 ISMF World Championships in the overall nation rankings means that more success is waiting on the horizon.

Chloe Kim Makes History (Again)

• Every time snowboarding phenom Chloe Kim slides into the halfpipe, something incredible happens. This season, the California native secured her third world championship title, tying the record for the most all-time in women’s halfpipe.

Men's Team Pursuit Secures Gold

• At the most recent world championships, the entire U.S. men’s speedskating squad proved why they’ll be top contenders at the 2026 Games. On top of phenom Jordan Stolz battling back from pneumonia and strep throat to secure three medals, Casey Dawson, Emery Lehman and Ethan Cepuran joined forces to claim the first men’s team pursuit world title for the U.S. since 2011.