Athletes to watch from Team USA at the Winter Olympics

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Around 2,900 apical athletes from astir the satellite converged connected Italy to instrumentality portion successful the 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics, hoping to bring location medals crossed 116 events.

Olympians from Team USA person won a full of 330 Winter Olympic medals done Beijing 2022 — 2nd lone to wintertime sports powerhouse Norway. This year, Team USA is bringing around 230 athletes to the Winter Olympics, which tally from Feb. 6 to Feb. 22.

These are immoderate of the American athletes to watch.

Alex Ferreira

This is freestyle skier Alex Ferreira's 3rd travel to the Olympics. Ferreira took location metallic astatine PyeongChang successful 2018 and a bronze medal successful Beijing successful 2022.

"It's awesome representing Team USA, due to the fact that I look astatine america and I deliberation we're the champion squad successful the world, and past it's special," Ferreira precocious told CBS News. "It's a large woody to Team USA, to bring location a medal for America and for your town, for your state, for your country. It's huge."

Alex Ferreira successful the Men's Ski Halfpipe Final

If helium couldn't vie successful his Olympic sport, Ferreira said he'd vie successful either way and tract oregon trampoline.

The 31-year-old athlete, who started skiing astatine property 3 and began competing astatine 10, specializes successful the halfpipe. His archetypal contention was an aerials event, which his parent enrolled him successful without informing him, according to Team USA. He's besides medaled astatine the Winter X Games. During the 2023-2024 season, Ferreira swept 5 satellite cups, X Games Aspen and the Dew Tour. Ferreira besides skis nether his change ego, an older antheral who goes by the sanction Hotdog Hans.

Alex Hall

Milano Cortina is 27-year-old freestyle skier Alex Hall's 3rd travel to the Olympics. He made his debut astatine the PyeongChang Games successful South Korea successful 2018. Hall said helium has much assurance present and a antithetic outlook than helium did then.

"Going to bask immoderate of the smaller things astatine the Olympics, not needfully the grandiose things," Hall told CBS News.

He won golden successful slopestyle successful Beijing successful 2022, and earned golden successful 4 antithetic disciplines astatine the X Games: large air, slopestyle, knuckle huck and existent ski.

Hall secured the metallic medal successful men's slopestyle astatine this year's Olympics.

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Hall, who was calved successful Alaska to an Italian mom, spent much than fractional of his beingness successful Europe. He grew up conscionable a fewer hours distant from wherever he'll beryllium competing.

The skier said he's looking guardant to gathering with athletes from astir the satellite and proceeding their stories, thing which should beryllium casual for him since helium speaks respective languages, including English, French, Italian and German.

Alysa Liu

Figure skater Alysa Liu, present 20 years aged and backmost from a astonishment status from the crystal astatine 16, headed to the Olympics for her 2nd clip this year. She was the youngest U.S. fig skating nationalist champion successful history, winning the rubric astatine property 13. She won different nationalist rubric astatine 14 earlier taking a interruption from skating aft the 2022 Olympics.

The U.S. took location golden successful the figure skating team contention this year, with Liu skating the abbreviated program.

After her comeback to skating, Liu won the women's singles satellite rubric astatine the 2025 World Championships. Olympic men's skating golden medalist Brian Boitano called it "the biggest comeback successful sports history."

Liu precocious told "60 Minutes" that arsenic she prepares for the Olympics, she views herself arsenic much of an creator than an athlete.

"I presumption competitions much as, like, a signifier for performing," she said.

Amber Glenn

Figure skater Amber Glenn, 26, made her Olympics debut conscionable weeks aft winning her 3rd consecutive U.S. title. She's the archetypal pistillate to bash truthful since Michelle Kwan.

The U.S. took location golden successful the fig skating squad contention this year, with Glenn taking connected the women's escaped skate. She's besides among American athletes who've been speaking up astir the governmental situation astatine home.

Glenn told CBS News that being an Olympian is "an unthinkable opportunity" due to the fact that she'd "get to beryllium connected the biggest signifier an jock tin beryllium on, and I'd beryllium capable to dependable my beliefs and my opinions and my message."

Amber Glenn astatine U.S. Figure Skating Championships

The skater has spent years advocating for intelligence wellness consciousness and the LGBTQ+ community; Glenn came retired arsenic bisexual and pansexual successful 2019.

"When I came retired initially, I was terrified. I was frightened it would impact my scores oregon something, but I didn't care," she said successful a Team USA station from 2024. "It was worthy it to spot the magnitude of young radical who felt much comfy successful their environments astatine the rink, who feel, 'Oh, I'm represented by her, and she's 1 of the apical skaters.'"

Brittany Bowe

This is Florida speedskater Brittany Bowe's 4th travel to the Olympics. The 37-year-old two-time Olympic bronze medalist specializes successful agelong track. She said her earlier experiences successful the Olympics person taught her to absorption connected the process.

"In years past, it's been truly casual to beryllium outcome-oriented, and I person recovered that that doesn't work. That tin beryllium go truly debilitating successful your preparation," Bowe told CBS News. "The cards volition autumn arsenic they will, and for maine to conscionable enactment focused successful the moment, successful the process and beryllium acceptable to spell erstwhile that weapon goes off."

Bowe carried the American emblem during the opening ceremonial of the 2022 Olympics successful Beijing.

"Being an Olympian is truthful important to maine due to the fact that it has fixed maine the level to animate people, to promote people, and it's besides fixed maine an accidental to unrecorded retired my puerility dream," Bowe said. "It's fixed maine an accidental to bring a full squad of radical along, and being capable to instrumentality my household each astir the world, for them to beryllium a portion of it has been really, truly meaningful."

She was edged retired connected Monday successful the 1,000 meters, finishing successful fourth.

On Tuesday, Bowe and her teammates again came successful 4th successful women's squad pursuit.

Caroline Harvey

As a 3-year-old newbie to crystal hockey, Caroline Harvey told her aunt she'd marque the 2022 U.S. Olympic team, according to Team USA. Her puerility prediction came existent erstwhile she became the youngest subordinate of the squad and helped the U.S. gain a metallic medal successful Beijing.

"Anytime you get to deterioration that crest and correspond your country, it's the biggest honor, and being capable to bash it astatine an Olympic mounting is conscionable thing that is unforgettable," Harvey told CBS News.

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The 23-year-old jock was named the champion defender astatine the 2024 and 2025 IIHF Women's World Championships. She's besides a two-time NCAA champion for the Wisconsin Badgers.

She's hoping to instrumentality location golden successful Milano Cortina, but said occurrence is yet "knowing we did everything we could to beryllium palmy successful playing our squad game."

The U.S. volition instrumentality connected Canada successful the golden medal crippled connected Thursday astatine 1:10 p.m. ET.

Corinne Stoddard

Milano Cortina is simply a 24-year-old skater Corinne Stoddard's 2nd travel to the Olympics.

She went to Beijing successful 2022, wherever she broke her chemoreceptor during her precise archetypal race, according to Team USA. Stoddard competed successful the remainder of her races portion incapable to respire retired of 1 nostril.

This year, Stoddard crashed during the women's 500m. Her autumn took down respective of her competitors. She aboriginal told NBC the softer crystal information is amended suited for fig skating, not velocity skating. The American inactive has 3 events to spell and told WBIR that her squad volition request to marque adjustments.

Corinne Stoddard competing astatine the Winter Olympics

Stoddard started roller skating successful kindergarten, past switched to inline skating a twelvemonth later. When she was 11, she began velocity skating. While Stoddard does not yet person immoderate Olympic medals, she's a three-time satellite medalist successful abbreviated way speedskating.

The skater said she's dreamed of the Olympics since she was a child, which required a batch of hard enactment on the way.

"I would ever person grooming each time aft school, truthful determination wasn't overmuch clip for like, play dates oregon sleepovers increasing up," she told CBS News. "There wasn't overmuch clip as, like, a teenager, to spell retired with friends connected the weekends. And past for my past 2 years of precocious school, I did online erstwhile I moved retired to Salt Lake to commencement grooming with the nationalist team, truthful I didn't get to bash immoderate of, similar the emblematic like, prom and worldly similar that. But to me, that's each worthy it."

Deedra Irwin

Deedra Irwin grew up wanting to beryllium an Olympian, but she was reasoning astir the Summer Olympics, not the Winter Olympics.

"I wanted to beryllium an Olympic way star. I had nary thought the Winter Olympics were a thing," Irwin told CBS News.

The 33-year-old jock picked up skiing successful precocious schoolhouse arsenic a mode to enactment successful signifier betwixt the autumn cross-country play and the outpouring way and tract season, according to Team USA. It wasn't until she was 25 that she started participating successful biathlon.

She went to the 2022 Beijing Olympics, wherever she finished 7th, the champion decorativeness ever for an American successful an idiosyncratic biathlon lawsuit astatine the Olympics.

"We've trained truthful overmuch passim our lives to conscionable get to this stage," Irwin said. "And truthful I deliberation for me, it means a batch of, like, assemblage and household and friends. I don't retrieve the past clip I was location for Christmas successful the past, like, 8 years."

Erin Jackson

Gold medalist speedskater Erin Jackson, 33, is making her 3rd Olympic quality — and this year, on with bobsledder Frank Del Duca, she besides led Team USA arsenic a flagbearer during the opening ceremony.

In 2022, Jackson became the first Black pistillate to triumph gold successful an idiosyncratic lawsuit astatine the Winter Olympics — aft astir failing to marque the squad that year.

Jackson slipped astatine the U.S. trials. Teammate Bowe, who qualified for the 500, 1,000 and 1,5000-meter races astatine trials, gave up her spot successful the 500-meter contention to guarantee Jackson would get to skate successful Beijing.

"Each of my Olympic appearances person been ace different, conscionable similar coming successful astatine each antithetic stages of my career, and this 1 coming successful arsenic the reigning champion, there's going to beryllium a batch of pressure, but that's what I'm looking guardant to," Jackson told CBS News.

Jackson archetypal started crystal skating soon before her archetypal travel to the Olympics. She archetypal stepped onto an crystal rink successful 2016. Jackson spent years inline skating earlier that.

"I'm conscionable ace grateful to beryllium capable to skate successful circles for a living, and I conscionable privation to support doing it arsenic agelong arsenic I can," she said.

Jackson participated successful the 1,000 meters connected Monday, concisely holding the lead, earlier finishing successful sixth.

Hilary Knight

Ice hockey subordinate Hilary Knight, 36, has been to the Olympics 4 times and has medaled each time, taking location a golden and 3 metallic medals. Milano Cortino is her 5th Olympics.

"And ne'er would I person imagined being capable to vie successful 5 Olympic Games," she told CBS News. "I mean, that's just, that's brainsick successful the champion way."

Knight, during a preliminary circular crippled against Canada connected Feb. 10, tied the all-time U.S. women's hockey grounds for astir Olympic points. The 5-0 crippled was the largest borderline of triumph ever successful the U.S.-Canada Olympic hockey rivalry, according to Team USA.

Ice hockey play has go a batch faster implicit the years, Knight said.

"It's a batch much technical, tactical. There's much of a dynamic, skillful level to it arsenic well, and the visibility is ever growing, which is truly exciting," she said.

Knight played a cardinal relation successful creating the Professional Women's Hockey League.

Ilia Malinin

Figure skater Ilia Malinin faced precocious expectations arsenic helium made his Olympic debut. The 21-year-old, known arsenic the "Quad God," is the archetypal jock to successfully onshore each of the six types of quadruple jumps successful 1 program.

His beardown show helped pb the American skaters to a gold medal successful the squad event, but helium fell abbreviated successful the idiosyncratic competition.

Malinin had the pb aft the men's singles abbreviated programme connected Feb. 10, but successful the escaped skate connected Feb. 13, helium fell doubly and failed to nail immoderate of his astir challenging planned jumps, ending up off the podium successful 8th place.

Ilia Malinin skating astatine the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics

According to Team USA, Malinin eats a cocoa barroom earlier each competition.

Malinan, whose parents were Olympic fig skaters for Uzbekistan and whose gramps was a fig skater for the USSR, started skating astatine 6.

He won golden astatine some the 2024 and 2025 ISU Figure Skating World Championships.

See Malinan's interrogation with "CBS Sunday Morning" here.

Jaelin Kauf

This is freestyle skier Jaelin Kauf's 3rd travel to the Olympics. The 29-year-old specializes successful moguls and dual moguls, the second of which made its debut astatine the Olympics this twelvemonth — thing Kauf said she's been waiting a agelong clip for.

"It's conscionable specified an breathtaking sport," she told CBS News. "I've astir apt excelled successful that historically much than singles, and truthful it'll conscionable beryllium truly chill to beryllium a portion of that connected the Olympic stage, being a portion of that debut."

Kauf earned metallic medals successful some of her events this year.

Both of Kauf's parents were nonrecreational mogul skiers.

"My ma has ever been my biggest leader and relation model, conscionable watching however she's conscionable gone astatine beingness and done what she's done, pushing the boundaries," Kauf said.

Jordan Stolz

Speedskater Jordan Stolz, 21, started skating connected the pond down his family's location aft watching Apolo Ohno and Shani Davis successful the 2010 Vancouver Olympics, according to Team USA.

Now he's not lone joining their ranks arsenic a golden medalist, helium besides acceptable Olympic records successful the 1,000-meter and 500-meter with times of 1:06.28 and 33.77 seconds, respectively.

He made his Olympic debut successful 2022. Stolz specializes successful the 500-meter, 1,000-meter and 1,500-meter. He became the satellite champion successful each 3 categories astatine the ISU Single Distance World Championships successful 2023 and again successful 2024.

Stolz besides skates professionally for the Dutch team, Albert Heijn Zaanlander. Speedskating is simply a widely-followed athletics successful the Netherlands, and Stolz said helium hopes to bring much consciousness to speedskating successful the U.S.

"It's evidently not going to beryllium arsenic overmuch arsenic it is successful Holland. I privation it was but possibly someday it volition be, but astatine slightest I tin bash a small bit," Stolz told CBS News.

Kendall Coyne Schofield

Milano Cortina volition beryllium crystal hockey subordinate Kendall Coyne Schofield's 4th travel to the Olympics. She antecedently took location a golden and 2 silvers.

"I'm conscionable truthful excited to consciousness revived done these games with family, friends, fans, excitement, conscionable energy, each the things that we weren't capable to acquisition successful Beijing due to the fact that [of] the pandemic," Coyne Schofield told CBS News.

This volition besides beryllium the 33-year-old athlete's archetypal Olympics arsenic a mom, thing that she said has made her a amended hockey player.

"It's enactment my beingness into perspective," she said. "It's provided maine with [an] abundance of patience that I didn't person previously."

Her lad chants "USA, USA," whether the squad wins oregon loses, she said.

Off the ice, Coyne Schofield voiced a hockey announcer successful the Pixar movie "Inside Out 2."

Korey Dropkin

This is 30-year-old curler Korey Dropkin's archetypal travel to the Olympics, though he's been curling for astir of his life.

"It's a household sport. Honestly, it's similar religion to me," Dropkin told CBS News. "I grew up astatine the curling club. My parents were ace progressive with a inferior programme astatine our curling club. My member was 5 years older. He was already curling. I followed successful his footsteps. I was similar his shadow."

2022 U.S. Olympic Team Trials for Curling

After graduating from precocious school, Dropkin moved to Duluth, Minnesota, which has go the U.S. curling capital.

"I've dedicated my full beingness to getting to the Olympics and hopefully medaling astatine the Olympics," helium said. "I moved myself and relocated and truly dedicated a batch of blood, sweat and tears. So being an Olympian, finally, I've been close, and present yet realizing the Olympics is conscionable a large imagination travel true."

Alongside Cory Thiesse, Dropkin delivered Team USA's first-ever medal successful mixed doubles curling, taking location silver.

Kristen Santos-Griswold

Speedskater Kristen Santos-Griswold, 31, astir chose not to spell to this year's Olympics aft heartbreak successful 2022. She was successful bronze medal presumption with conscionable 2 laps to spell successful the 1,000-meter erstwhile a bump by an hostile caused her to fall. The bump was aboriginal ruled a penalty, but the disheartening decorativeness had Santos-Griswold considering retirement.

"When I decided that I was going to support going, I was like, 'All right, I'm doing it for me. I'm going to marque it each worthy it. I'm going to bask the journey," Santos-Griswold told CBS News. "I deliberation that's conscionable helped to, like, catapult maine into going into Olympic twelvemonth with fig 1 connected my helmet."

This year, she missed retired connected the 1,000-meter abbreviated way velocity skating semifinals by conscionable .034 seconds and besides failed to marque the last successful the 500-meter.

Santos-Griswold has been grooming for astir of her life. She started fig skating astatine 3. When she was 9, Santos-Griswold saw speedskating successful a commercialized connected TV, decided she wanted to effort it, and fell successful love.

"Being an Olympian means everything," she said. "It's thing that I've been moving towards my full life. I started skating erstwhile I was 3 years old, and I'm 30 now, truthful coagulated 27 years of dreaming astir this."

Santos-Griswold is presently moving connected a doctorate, with plans to beryllium a carnal therapist erstwhile her skating vocation is over, according to Team USA.

Lindsey Vonn

Alpine skier Lindsey Vonn, who made a comeback respective years aft retiring, was determined to vie successful her 5th Olympics — contempt a recent injury connected the slopes that near her with a ruptured ACL. But the effort ended successful a crash conscionable seconds into her downhill race, with Vonn being airlifted disconnected the upland successful beforehand of stunned spectators. (Teammate Breezy Johnson went connected to triumph the gold.)

The 41-year-old Vonn antecedently competed astatine the Olympics successful 2002, 2006, 2010 and 2018, taking location golden and 2 metallic medals.

In a connection posted to societal media a time aft her clang astatine Milano Cortina, Vonn urged others to effort to execute their dreams, adjacent if they don't cookware out.

"I anticipation if you instrumentality distant thing from my travel it's that you each person the courageousness to situation greatly," she wrote. "Life is excessively abbreviated not to instrumentality chances connected yourself. Because the lone nonaccomplishment successful beingness is not trying."

Vonn is the lone American pistillate to triumph Olympic golden successful downhill, according to Team USA, and she besides has the astir victories by immoderate skier — antheral oregon pistillate — successful a azygous discipline.

Vonn started skiing astatine 3. She learned with her begetter and grandfather, some of whom were competitory skiers, and made her Olympic debut astatine 17. She retired successful 2019 amid terrible genu damage. Vonn has since had genu country and told CBS News she's present the strongest she's been successful her career.

"The lone happening I deliberation that's possibly much challenging astatine 41 is conscionable the grind of being away," she said. "I benignant of got utilized to being astatine location with my dogs and my family, and I got distant from, you know, the regular of being connected the road, which doesn't needfully alteration due to the fact that of age, just, I think, much from being distant from the athletics for six years."

In 2022, John Clarey, past 41, made past arsenic the oldest alpine skier to medal astatine an Olympic Winter Games. Vonn said her property won't halt her from competing astatine the coming Olympics.

"If I person the accidental to compete, I'm going to," Vonn said. "Just due to the fact that I'm 41 doesn't mean I can't bash that if I physically consciousness good, which I do, I consciousness amended present than I did successful my 20s. So you know, I don't spot determination to beryllium immoderate crushed wherefore I can't bash it astatine 41."

A week earlier the commencement of the Games, Vonn crashed successful 1 of her last downhill tune-ups. While she was airlifted disconnected the upland to person aesculapian attraction aft injuring her near knee, she assured her fans connected societal media that her Olympic imagination was "not over."

"This is simply a precise hard result 1 week earlier the Olympics… but if there's 1 happening I cognize however to do, it's a comeback," she wrote.

"I'm not letting this gaffe done my fingers. I'm gonna bash it. End of story," she said.

Madison Chock and Evan Bates

Ice dancers Madison Chock and Evan Bates are backmost for different the Olympics — and they acceptable a precocious barroom from the start, scoring a world-best 91.06 points successful bushed creation arsenic the contention began connected Feb. 6.

Chock, 33, competed successful 2014, 2018 and 2022, portion Bates, 36, began his Olympic tally successful 2010.

Their concern began successful 2011, and they won Olympic golden during the squad lawsuit astatine their 3rd Olympic Games. The duo helped Team USA triumph its second consecutive gold successful the squad lawsuit astatine Milano Cortina 2026, triumphing successful some the bushed creation and the escaped dance.

Chock and Bates came successful arsenic the favorites to triumph idiosyncratic Olympic golden successful the Winter Games, but they were edged retired by the French duo successful the escaped creation connected Feb. 11 to take silver instead.

Figure Skating Training - Madison Chock and Evan Bates

"There's truthful overmuch pridefulness down it," Chock told CBS News. "I deliberation increasing up and seeing different athletes correspond Team USA meant a batch and shaped a batch of however I presumption athletics and athleticism, and there's truthful overmuch pridefulness that comes with representing your state successful the Olympic Games connected the biggest signifier for sports successful the world. And it's conscionable been the top grant of my beingness to beryllium a subordinate of Team USA."

Chock and Bates person besides won 3 consecutive ISU World Figure Skating Championships, starting successful 2023.

They're partners disconnected the ice, too. The mates got joined successful 2024.

Maxim Naumov

Figure skater Maxim Naumov made his archetypal quality astatine the Olympics aft a twelvemonth marked by calamity and an affectional comeback.

His travel to the Olympics comes a twelvemonth aft his parents, erstwhile satellite champions Vadim Naumov and Evgenia Shishkova, died erstwhile their level collided with a subject chopper connected attack to Washington, D.C. His parents, who were popular coaches astatine the Skating Club of Boston, were among 67 radical killed successful the crash.

Naumov delivered an affectional skate connected Feb. 10. "Mom and Dad, this is for you," was projected connected the large surface overhead earlier helium started his abbreviated program. Naumov held a photograph of his parents arsenic helium awaited his score, conscionable arsenic helium did astatine the U.S. Figure Skating Championships successful January.

Maxim Naumov astatine 2026 United States Figure Skating Championships

"Having relation models beryllium close determination successful the house, astatine the rink, conscionable everywhere, they inspired maine to privation this imagination and it would mean perfectly everything for maine to beryllium astatine the Olympics," Naumov said successful a social media post. "I'm moving arsenic hard arsenic I perchance tin and I'm doing everything successful my powerfulness to bash so. Doing it for them would beryllium adjacent much beautiful."

Naumov yet ended up successful 20th place.

Mikaela Shiffrin

Skier Mikaela Shiffrin, 30, headed to the Olympics for the 4th time. She archetypal skied successful the Olympics successful 2013 and has earned 2 golden medals and a silver.

Shiffrin specializes successful slalom, elephantine slalom, super-G and downhill. She's the archetypal alpine skier to record 100 FIS World Cup wins and the archetypal jock successful FIS Ski World Cup past to triumph successful each six disciplines.

In 2024, Shiffrin crashed aft losing power portion connected the people for the 2026 Milano Cortina Olympics. Then past year, she said she was dealing with post-traumatic accent upset from different crash, during which she suffered a puncture coiled and terrible trauma to her oblique muscles.

Mystique Ro

Skeleton racer Mystique Ro, 31, headed to the Olympics for the archetypal time, but she's nary alien to competition.

Ro competed successful way & field. Then, successful 2016, she was invited to a rookie campy by USA Bobsled/Skeleton. Coaches determination told her she was a small tiny for bobsled and pushed her to effort skeleton.

During skeleton, racers connected sleds — caput archetypal and look down — tin scope speeds of astir 80 miles per hour, utilizing assemblage shifts to usher the sled done the course.

"Once you get distant from the fear, it starts to go a game," Ro told CBS News. "So if you get past the fear, that's the archetypal step, and past you tin benignant of bask the athletics for what it is."

While plentifulness of kids thrust sleds down hills, Row said this isn't the same.

"The velocity is importantly faster, and there's a batch much peril progressive if you're not prepared for it," she said.

She made her FIL World Cup debut successful 2023 and, the pursuing year, became the archetypal American jock to triumph a skeleton contention connected the World Cup circuit successful 8 years.

In her Olympic debut, Ro placed 15th successful women's skeleton and seventh successful mixed squad skeleton, on with teammate Austin Florian.

Nick Goepper

Milano Cortina is skier Nick Goepper's 4th travel to the Olympics. In 2014, helium took bronze successful Sochi, contributing to a U.S. podium sweep successful men's slopestyle skiing. Goepper won metallic astatine the Olympics successful 2018 and again successful 2022.

"To me, being an Olympian has meant legacy," helium told CBS News. "I americium a immense instrumentality of history. I emotion speechmaking astir radical who person done, you know, astonishing things and household connections and conscionable like, you know, people's eyes ever airy up erstwhile you speech astir the Olympics."

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The 31-year-old jock retired aft Beijing, but past returned little than a twelvemonth aboriginal to vie successful halfpipe alternatively of slopestyle.

Goepper said his attack to contention and the Olympics has changed implicit the years.

"I tin beryllium backmost and bask the small moments a small spot more. I tin savor things a small more, which is nice," helium said.

Paula Moltzan

Alpine skier Paula Moltzan made her Olympic debut successful 2022.

"I consciousness similar I learned a batch successful my archetypal Olympics, and truthful to instrumentality each those lessons learned into different accidental would mean a batch to me," she told CBS News.

Those lessons took her to an Olympic podium this year. She won bronze alongside Jackie Wiles successful the women's squad combined.

Moltzan, present 31, won the inferior satellite slalom rubric erstwhile she was 20, becoming the archetypal American pistillate to triumph the lawsuit astatine the inferior satellite championships. She besides won the NCAA women's slalom rubric arsenic a freshman astatine the University of Vermont.

Audi FIS Alpine Ski World Cup - Women's Slalom

After her Olympics debut successful Beijing astatine 27, Moltzan became a two-time satellite medalist. She won a rubric successful the parallel squad lawsuit successful 2023 and her archetypal idiosyncratic satellite medal, a bronze, successful elephantine slalom successful 2025.

She said her household sacrificed a batch to enactment her skiing career.

"I deliberation they took 2nd mortgages retired connected my location to let maine to vie successful sport. And past my siblings arsenic well, I decidedly had the precedence due to the fact that of my diversion ability. They gave up possibly smaller moments, similar going to summertime campy truthful I could spell to skis camp," she said. "But it each becomes worthy it erstwhile you're determination with your team, representing Team USA."

Red Gerard

This is Red Gerard's 3rd travel to the Olympics. The 25-year-old snowboarder won golden successful slopestyle successful 2018 erstwhile helium was conscionable 17, becoming the youngest American snowboarder to execute the feat, according to Team USA.

"I rapidly learned that archetypal Olympics however large it is and however chill it is," Gerard told CBS News. "Ever since, you conscionable benignant of privation to get backmost connected that signifier due to the fact that determination is nary signifier bigger than the Olympics."

Toyota US Grand Prix 2026 - Aspen Snowmass Snowboard Slopestyle Finals

Gerard returned to the Olympics successful 2022, finishing 4th successful slopestyle and 5th successful large air. The snowboarder won successful slopestyle astatine the 2024 and 2025 X Games.

Gerard started snowboarding erstwhile helium was conscionable 2 years old. In 2007, his household moved to Colorado, wherever they built a snowboarding parkland successful their backyard to enactment Gerard's passion.

Ryan Cochran-Siegle

Alpine skier Ryan Cochran-Siegle, 33, headed to the Olympics for his 3rd Games. Cochran-Siegle, the lad of an Olympian, started skiing astatine the property of 2.

He tore his ACL and lateral meniscus successful 2013 astatine the FIS Alpine Ski World Championships, according to Team USA. Five years later, helium made his Olympic debut successful 2018 successful PyeongChang. Cochran-Siegle won his archetypal FIS World Cup Race successful 2020, but missed the FIS Alpine Ski World Championships successful 2021 with a fractured neck.

TOPSHOT-SKI-ALPINE-WORLD-SUI-MEN-DOWNHILL

The skier came backmost successful 2022, wherever helium won metallic successful super-G astatine the Beijing Games. He was the lone U.S. alpine skiing medalist astatine the Beijing Games.

This year, helium took location metallic successful the men's super-G successful alpine skiing.

Cochran-Siegle told CBS News that during his erstwhile Olympic appearances, helium learned to clasp the infinitesimal and to spot and judge successful himself.

"Just going retired determination and doing what I emotion and putting myself retired determination is what's important," helium said.

Elizabeth Campbell contributed to this report.

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