Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026 Preview: Figure Skating

Just minutes from the city center, the Milano Ice Skating Arena will host figure skating and short-track speedskating during the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026. Featuring a permanent rink with easy metro access and home to a renowned skating school, this premier venue seats over 11,500 spectators and will continue to support ice sports and young talent long after the Games.



Olympic figure skating is one of the most popular sports at the Winter Games and features five events: men’s singles, women’s singles, pairs, ice dance and the team event.


Singles and pairs focus on jumps, spins, power, and precision. Pairs skating, part of the Olympics since 1908, highlights strength and synchronization through lifts and throw jumps. Ice dance emphasizes rhythm, intricate footwork, choreography, and connection, with no large jumps or overhead lifts. The team event brings together skaters from each discipline, with performances contributing points toward a country’s overall score.


Figure skating is the oldest Olympic Winter Games sport, debuting at the 1908 and 1920 Olympic Summer Games before becoming a Winter Games staple. Men’s and women’s singles and pairs have appeared at every Olympic Winter Games, with ice dance added in 1976 and the team competition added to the mix in 2014.


Most disciplines include a short program and a free skate, both set to music chosen by the skaters. Scores are determined by technical specialists and judges who evaluate both execution and artistic performance. Winners are decided by the combined scores from each segment.

Team USA has a storied Olympic figure skating legacy, earning 54 medals (17 gold, 16 silver, 21 bronze) and ranking among the world’s top nations. The U.S. captured its first Olympic medal — a silver in the women’s singles event — at the 1924 Chamonix Games.


American dominance began with Dick Button, who won back-to-back Olympic gold medals in 1948 and 1952. For the women, two-time medalist Michelle Kwan is the most decorated U.S. figure skater of all time, tied with nine national championship titles to her name. At the 1956 Cortina d’Ampezzo Games, Team USA claimed five of six singles medals, sweeping men’s singles and earning gold and silver in women’s singles.

In recent years, success has been fueled by stars such as Nathan Chen (who is the only singles skater with three medals — one in singles and two in the team event), Ilia Malinin, and ice dancers Madison Chock, Evan Bates, Meryl Davis and Charlie White.

A defining modern moment came at the Olympic Winter Games Beijing 2022, when the U.S. team was elevated from silver to gold in the team event following an investigation involving the original gold medalist, with medals formally awarded in 2024.




The United States narrowly missed becoming the only country to send a full Olympic figure skating team — three entries in each discipline — for the first time since 1984, falling just short in pairs. Overall, the U.S. will send 16 skaters: three men, three women, two pairs teams, and three ice dance teams to compete in Milan.

On the men’s side, Malinin enters as arguably the top skater in the world. The 21-year-old dominated the national championships, running away with the title by more than 50 points to claim his fourth consecutive U.S. crown. His performance included a new personal-best short program score, further underscoring his dominance. The only skater ever to land a quadruple Axel in competition, Malinin—known as the “Quad God”—has nearly every accolade except one. The Milan Games will mark his Olympic debut, with an Olympic gold medal the lone prize missing from his résumé.


For singles skater Maxim Naumov, making the Olympic team is a moment filled with joy — but it comes after an incredibly difficult year. Now 24, Naumov lost his parents in a tragic plane crash just a year ago, a loss that changed everything for him. His parents were world champions in pairs figure skating in 1994 and competed in their second Winter Olympics that same year. After Maxim finished fourth at last year’s championships, he headed home, while his parents (who were also his coaches) stayed behind to attend a developmental camp. On their way to Washington, their flight collided midair with a military helicopter over the Potomac River, killing 67 people, including many athletes, coaches, and families from the U.S. figure skating community. Now, earning a spot on the Olympic team is a chance for Maxim to carry his parents’ legacy with him onto the Olympic ice.


American women’s figure skaters have gone without an Olympic medal since 2006, but Amber Glenn and Alysa Liu lead a group that looks ready to finally end the two-decade drought. Glenn cemented her place among U.S. skating greats at the 2026 Prevagen U.S. Figure Skating Championships, winning her third consecutive national title. The victory made her the first American woman to claim three straight championships since Kwan, who won eight in a row from 1998 to 2005. The 26-year-old held off reigning world champion Liu to secure the title and will be competing in her first Olympic Games.


Liu, now 20, brings her own remarkable story. She competed at the Beijing Olympics, where she finished seventh, and shortly afterward stepped away from the sport at just 16. A prodigy, Liu became the youngest U.S. women’s national champion in history when she won the title at age 13 in 2019 and later became the first American woman to land a quadruple jump in international competition. After returning to competition three years later, Liu has been skating at an elite level once again, making her a key contender heading into Milan.


Ice dancers Chock and Bates hope to carry their momentum from the 2026 U.S. Figure Skating Championships into Milan after capturing their seventh national title and surpassing Davis and White for the most championships by a U.S. ice dance team. Renowned for their strong chemistry long before they married in 2024, the four-time Olympians are still seeking their first individual Olympic medal in the discipline. They narrowly missed the podium in Beijing but earned gold as part of the U.S. team event.


The Olympic figure skating competition begins on February 6 with the team event. Medals will be awarded on: 

February 8 (Team Event)

February 11 (Ice Dance — Free Dance)

February 13 (Men’s Singles — Free Skate)

February 16 (Pairs — Free Skate)

February 19 (Women’s Singles — Free Skate)