This is part of Slate’s 2026 Olympics coverage. Read more here. At the outset of the Milan Cortina Games, I thought that America could have a historic Olympics in figure skating, with realistic gold-medal hopes in four of the five events. Team USA started by winning the team event, but has since struggled to live up to that golden potential. Madison Chock and Evan Bates fell just short of gold in ice dance and America’s firmest lock for a gold, Ilia Malinin, crashed out into eighth place in men’s singles. Only the women’s event remains, and the U.S. squad, also known as the Blade Angels, is the strongest in decades. Going in, I thought they might snap Team USA’s 20-year medal drought in women’s figure skating by leaving the 2026 Games with two of the three medals. After the short program, however, two angels have fallen, and only one American, reigning World Champion Alysa Liu, remains in the hunt for gold. Luckily for American fans, she appears to be the exact right person to handle that pressure.
Published: February 18, 2026 3:11 am
Source: Slate — Read original