The 2026 Winter Olympics are finally here! It’s an exciting winter for Madison and not only because of the frozen temperatures and snow falls but it’s a winter of Olympic Games.
The 2026 Winter Olympics (Milano Cortina 2026) will take place from February 6–22, 2026, across multiple venues in Milan, Cortina d’Ampezzo, and other locations in Italy. It will feature 116 events across 8 sports, including new disciplines, with competition starting on Feb. 4.
Information and All Events here:
https://www.olympics.com/en/milano-cortina-2026
Wisconsin will be represented of course and we are proud to name multiple Winter Olympian athletes heading to the games in Italy, including speed skater Jordan Stolz from Kewaskum, Wisconsin (his second Olympics), biathletes Deedra Irwin (her second Olympics) from Pulaski, Wisconsin and Paul Schommer (his second Olympics) from Appleton, Wisconsin. We have Kevin Bolger from Minocqua, Wisconsin in Cross Country Skiing for his first Olympia. What’s more, Hockey is well represented by several UW-Madison Badger women. Our representing team consists of former Wisconsin Badger hockey player and famous Hilary Knight (heading to her fifth Olympics) and current UW Badgers Kirsten Simms, Caroline Harvey, Laila Edwards, and Ava McNaughton. We also got Milwaukee’s Marquette University Alumni athlete Emery Lehman (his fourth Olympics) in Speed Skating from Oak Park, Illinois and Luge athlete Marcus Mueller from Brookfield, Wisconsin, his first Olympic games. Lastly, let’s name our former UW Badgers Emily Clark, Blayre Turnbull, Ann-Renee Desbiens and Sarah Nurse.
In short, here are your Wisconsin Athletes for this winter’s games:
Jordan Stolz (Kewaskum): Speed Skating phenom making his second Olympics.
Deedra Irwin (Pulaski): Biathlete, second Olympics.
Paul Schommer (Appleton): Biathlete, second Olympics.
Emery Lehman (Milwaukee/Marquette): Speed Skating, three-time Olympian.
Marcus Mueller (Brookfield): Luge.
Kevin Bolger (Minocqua): Cross Country Skiing.
Wisconsin-Connected Women’s Hockey Stars (USA & Canada):
Hilary Knight (UW-Madison): U.S. Women’s Hockey legend, heading to her 5th Olympics.
Current UW-Madison Badgers: Laila Edwards, Caroline Harvey, Ava McNaughton, Kirsten Simms (USA).
Former Badgers (Canada): Emily Clark, Blayre Turnbull, Ann-Renee Desbiens, Sarah Nurse.
Here is what we know about our Wisconsin Olympic athletes:
Deedra Irwin, 33, from Pulaski, Wisconsin (BIATHLON)
Starting biathlon at age 25, Deedra will compete in her second Olympics after taking seventh in Beijing, the best finish for an American in an individual biathlon event. She attended Michigan Tech University competing in three sports cross-country skiing, cross country and track and field.
Paul Schommer, 33, from Appleton, Wisconsin (BIATHLON)
Also an Olympian in Beijing, Schommer took seventh in the 4x6k mixed relay. He attended The College of St. Scholastica in Duluth, Minnesota.
Kevin Bolger, 32, from Minocqua, Wisconsin (CROSS COUNTRY SKIING)
Also competing in the Beijing Olympics, Kevin took ninth in the 4x10k relay and 17th in the men’s sprint freestyle. He also took seventh in a relay at the 2025 World Championships. Kevin competed collegiately for the University of Utah. During his time there, he was a four-time NCAA qualifier, a 2016 All-American, and a 2017 RMISA MVP.
WOMEN’S HOCKEY
Wisconsin will be well presented in women’s hockey, with five players suiting up in the Olympics (four for team USA) and a total of 12 current or former players competing for either USA, Canada or Czechia. The U.S. will be a gold-medal favorite one Olympics cycle after taking second to Canada. We have a UW presence on both sides.
The head coach of the women’s team, John Wroblewski, is a native of Neenah, Wisconsin. Current University of Wisconsin athletic trainer Stefanie Arndt and former UW director of operations/equipment manager Sis Paulsen are on the Team USA staff, as well.
Players to know:
Britta Curl-Salemme, 25, University of Wisconsin, Madison
Britta played for UW Madison from 2018-2024. The North Dakota native now plays in the Professional Women’s Hockey League, where her Minnesota team won the league title in 2025. She’s competed in four World Championships for Team USA.
Laila Edwards, 21, University of Wisconsin, Madison
Laila (an Ohio native) has played on two World Championships teams and will become the first Black woman to play for the U.S. women’s Olympic team after she already became the first Black woman to play for the U.S. women’s senior national team. She’s one of four current Badgers on Team USA.
Caroline Harvey, 23, University of Wisconsin, Madison
Caroline (a New Hampshire native) is perhaps the top player (defender) in the country, leading the nation in assists and sitting second in points. She could become the first overall pick in the upcoming Professional Women’s Hockey League draft. Caroline will be competing in her second Olympics. She also already played on the 2022 team.
Hilary Knight, 36, University of Wisconsin, Madison
A legend in the sport, Hilary will be competing in her fifth Olympics, the most of any women’s hockey player in U.S. history. She won two national titles at Wisconsin and remains the UW career scoring leader. Hilary is also the Team USA captain since 2023.
Ava McNaughton, 21, University of Wisconsin, Madison
Ava is the second-youngest player on the US-team. The Pennsylvania native ranks second in the NCAA. She will be competing in her first Olympics in Italy this February.
Kirsten Simms, 21, University of Wisconsin, Madison
It will be her first Olympics. Kirsten grew up in Plymouth, Michigan, playing youth hockey with the boys until eight grade, when she started playing girls hockey for the Little Caesars AAA Hockey Club. The Wisconsin Badgers women’s hockey team won their eighth NCAA national championship in March, 2025, defeating Ohio State 4-3 in an overtime thriller. Junior forward Simms scored the game-tying penalty shot with 18.9 seconds left in regulation and the overtime winner, earning Most Outstanding Player honors.
Emily Clark, 30, University of Wisconsin, Madison (playing for Canada)
Clark is a three-time Olympian with a gold and silver medal. She was part of the Badgers’ 2019 championship team.
Blayre Turnbull, 32, University of Wisconsin, Madison (playing for Canada)
Blayre played for Wisconsin from 2011-2015 and is bouncing back from a scary 2021 injury in which she broke her fibula celebrating the IIHF Women’s World Championship victory and gold medal. She had a goal and two assists in the semifinal win of the 2022 Olympics, a 10-3 win over Switzerland.
Daryl Watts, 26, University of Wisconsin, Madison (playing for Canada)
The first-time Olympian transferred to Wisconsin in 2019 and set a program record for most assists in a season with 49, leading the NCAA with 74 points. She had the game-winning goal in overtime against Northeastern in the NCAA championship game in 2021.
Ann-Renee Desbiens, 31, University of Wisconsin, Madison (playing for Canada)
The goalie won the Patty Kazmaier Award in 2017 and led the Badgers to four Frozen Fours, breaking the NCAA record for shutouts along the way. Desbiens won silver in 2018 and gold in 2022, when she made 38 saves in the final game against the USA.
Sarah Nurse, 31, University of Wisconsin, Madison (playing for Canada)
Sarah played with the Badgers from 2013-2017. The Canadian forward who famously set the Olympic record for most points (18) and assists (13) in a single tournament during the 2022 Beijing Winter Games, leading Canada to a gold medal. As the first Black woman to win Olympic hockey gold, she is a trailblazer, also known for her 2018 silver medal.
Adéla Šapovalivov, 19, University of Wisconsin, Madison (playing for Czechia)
The current Badgers’ freshman forward (and fifth current UW player to play in the Olympics) is the first European player to play for UW and the first Badger to appear in the Olympics for a team other than USA or Canada. Her team will face Team USA on in Milan. She was named Best Forward at the 2024 U18 Women’s World Championships.
Marcus Mueller, 20, Brookfield, Wisconsin (LUGE)
Mueller, a Brookfield Central alumnus, won the U23 world championship in men’s doubles with teammate Ansel Haugsjaa from Framingham, Massachusetts in 2025 and is a three-time junior World Cup gold medalist in men’s doubles, as well. Both will be competing as a double in Milan. It will be his first Olympic Games.
Ben Loomis, 27, Eau Claire, Wisconsin (NORDIC COMBINED)
Loomis will head to the Olympics for a third time after competing in Pyeongchang in 2018 and Beijing in 2022. Last Olympics, he took sixth on the team large hill event, and he took 10th in that event four years earlier. The event features cross-country skiing and ski jumping. Loomis, who moved to Utah as a teenager but still learned ski jumping at Flying Eagles Ski Club in Eau Claire, was the USSA Nordic Combined Athlete of the Year in 2016 and joined the Army in 2019.
Jordan Stolz, 21, Kewaskum, Wisconsin (SPEED SKATING)
The young speed-skating talent has a chance to do really well in Italy. With his specialties in the 500 meters, 1,000 meters and 1,500 meters, he has a real chance to win three golds. He has 10 medals overall in world championships races, including seven gold and two silver.
Emery Lehman, 29, Marquette University, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Heading to his third Olympics, the Illinois native already has a bronze medal from Beijing in 2022 with the men’s team pursuit. He took gold in the same event in 2025 at the World Championships. He played club hockey during at Marquette. In 2014, Lehman became the youngest male U.S. speed skater to make his Olympic debut, besting a record previously set by Wisconsin speed-skating legend Eric Heiden in 1976.
MadTownLife is excited to follow our Wisconsin athletes in February 2026 in Italy !
GOOD LUCK & BREAK A LEG!
Related Posts
