Mikaela Shiffrin and Lindsey Vonn headline a list of Coloradans that will head to the Winter Olympics in Milano-Cortina d’Ampezzo next month.
On Wednesday, U.S. Ski and Snowboard named 97 athletes to represent Team USA. Twenty-three of those athletes are from Colorado or have ties to the state. Fourteen will compete in the Winter Games for the first time in their careers.
The biggest story leading up to the Winter Olympics is Vonn’s comeback trail to qualify for her fifth-career Winter Olympics. The St. Paul, Minnesota, native and Vail resident came out of retirement in November 2024 and collected her 83rd World Cup win last month. During the same month, Vonn announced that Milano-Cortina will be her last Winter Games. The 41-year-old is hoping to add another medal to the three she has already won.
Shiffrin qualified for her fourth Winter Games in December. The Edwards native has lit up the World Cup circuit this season. She has collected six wins this season. Her 107th win in the slalom at Flachau, Austria, this month is an all-time record. She already has two gold medals and a silver medal in three Winter Olympics.
Here are other Coloradans who qualified for the 2026 Winter Olympics:
Alpine
Women
Nina O’Brien
The San Francisco native and Denver resident qualified for her second Winter Games. She qualified for Beijing in 2022 in the giant slalom where she had the sixth-fastest time during her first run. But, a crash during the second run left her with a broken leg and abruptly ended her first Winter Olympics. She recovered to win gold in the mixed parallel event at the 2023 World Championships. But 19 months later, she broke the same leg. She returned this World Cup season to turn in back-to-back career high finishes.
Men
Kyle Negomir
The Littleton native makes his Winter Olympic debut after battling through injuries throughout his seven years with the team. Negomir won the team event at the World Championships and overall championship on the NorAm circuit in 2019. He won the Super-G national championship at the 2023 U.S. Alpine Ski National Championships. He suffered injuries from a training round two years before the 2022 Winter Games in Beijing. Negomir has collected four Top-20 finishes including a season-best 11th place at Gardena, Italy.
River Radamus
Radamus is back for his second Winter Olympics. The Edwards product hopes to make the podium this time around after coming close in 2022. Radamus was one-tenth of a second away from a bronze medal in the men’s team giant slalom and 15th in the Super G. Radamus has looked strong in the giant slalom on the World Cup circuit. He has collected four straight top-10 finishes in his last four races.
Cross Country Team
Lauren Jortberg
Jortberg qualified for her first Winter Olympics. Originally from Boulder, she was a three-time All-American at Dartmouth College. Her best finish was third at the 2025 American Birkenbiener.
Hailey Swirbul
A native of El Jebel and Alaska Pacific University product, Swirbul ended her two-year retirement to compete in the World Cup and make her second Winter Games. At the 2022 Winter Games in Beijing, she finished 6th in the 4 x 5 km Relay, 32nd in10 km Classic Style, and 40th in the 2 x 7.5 km Skiathlon. Swirlbul had won four U.S. national championships by 2023 before she initially retired after the 2022-2023 World Cup season.
Freeski Halfpipe
Women
Riley Jacobs
Oak Creek’s Riley Jacobs will be competing in her first Winter Olympics. Her resume includes four NorAm Championships, a sixth place finish at the 2024 Winter X Games, nine Top 10 World Cup finishes, and an appearance at the 2023 World Championships.
Men
(AP Photo)
Alex Ferreira in the men's halfpipe final at the 2018 Winter Olympics.
Alex Ferreira
Ferreira made his third Winter Games and hopes to add gold to his Olympic collection. The Aspen native took home silver in the the 2018 Winter Games in Pyeongchang and bronze in the 2022 Winter Games in Beijing. He’s an 11-time World Cup winner and has won seven medals at the Winter X Games.
Birk Irving
Irving qualified for his second straight Winter Olympics. At the 2022 Winter Games in Beijing, the Winter Park product finished 5th in men’s halfpipe. He’s a four-time World Cup winner and finished second and third at the Winter X Games in 2023 and 2021 respectively.
Freestyle Ski Team Moguls and Aerials
Moguls
Women
Elizabeth “Liz” Lemley
Lemley was the youngest skier during the 2021-2022 FIS Freestyle Ski World Cup circuit when she debuted at 15 years old. The Vail native had two Top-10 finishes that earned her Rookie of the Year that season. Now, she heads to her first Winter Olympics. Last year, she won gold medals in dual moguls and team dual moguls at the Winter Youth Olympics.
Men
Charlie Mickel
Durango’s Charlie Mickel will make his Winter Olympic debut after having a stellar 2024-2025 season on the World Cup circuit that included a third place finish at the finals in Livigno, Italy. He’s also a two-time U.S. National Champion and the 2024 NorAm Cup Overall Champion.
Landon Wendler
Wendler comes from Steamboat Springs. He qualified for his first Winter Olympics. He has 10 podium finishes in the NorAm Cup and two podium finishes in the U.S. National Championships. During the 2023-2024 FIS World Cup season, he placed third in Almaty, Kazakhstan, dual moguls and earned four additional Top 10 finishes.
Nordic Combined
Niklas Malacinski
Malacinski, who is from Steamboat Springs, who is making his Winter Olympics debut. During last year’s World Cup, his best finish was 13th at Gundersen Large Hill in Ruka, Finland. His resume includes a U.S. National Championship in 2024, gold and silver medals from the World University Games, and a 5th place finish at the 2023 Junior World Championships.
Ski Jumping
Women
Annika Belshaw
Annika Belshaw grew up ski jumping in her hometown of Steamboat Springs. Now, she will compete in her first winter Olympics. Earlier this season, she won her eighth national title and is the highest-ranked American woman on the World Cup circuit in 29th. Earlier this month, she became the first American woman to finish in the Top 10 with a 7th place finish at the Ljubno World Cup.
Men
Jason Colby
Colby, also of Steamboat Springs, is competing in his first Winter Olympics. During this World Cup season, he earned a career-best two individual Top 10 finishes over the last two months. Colby placed seventh in Engelberg, Switzerland, which was the best finish for an American man in the past two decades. He’s the top-ranked American jumper, man or woman, at 26th overall.
Snowboard
Halfpipe
Women
Maddy Schaffrick
Steamboat Spring’s Maddy Schaffrick retired from competitive snowboarding nearly a decade ago due to injuries and to care for her mental heath. During her time away from the sport, she worked as a plumber and a coach. In her first competition back, she earned her first career podium finish by placing third at the 2024-2025 World Cup opener in Secret Garden, China. She will now represent the USA for the first time at the Winter Games.
Men
Chase Blackwell
Summit County’s Chase Blackwell goes into his first Winter Olympics after placing 5th at the Toyota U.S. Grand Prix in Copper Mountain last month. In January alone, he has two 8th place finishes at World Cup events in Buttermilk, Colorado, and Laax, Switzerland. Blackwell also has a dozen Top 10 finishes in other competitions in his career.
Jake Pates
Pates returns to the Winter Games after eight years. Since placing 8th at the 2018 Pyeongchang, the Eagle resident suffered recurring concussions most notably in 2019 at the Mammoth World Cup. He retired in 2021 and became a mental health advocate. This season, Pates has two Top 10 finishes on the World Cup circuit.
Parallel Giant Slalom and Snowboard Cross
Cody Winters
Steamboat Springs’ Cody Winters is heading to his second Winter Olympics in two disciplines, parallel giant slalom and snowboard cross. At the 2022 Winter Games in Beijing, Winters placed 29th in the parallel giant slalom. During last season’s World Championships. He finished fifth in the parallel slalom mixed team and 32nd in the snowboardcross.
Snowboard Cross
Stacy Gaskill
Gaskill is heading to her second Winter olympics. The Golden native finished 7th in her debut. Gaskill has racked up 11 NorAm podium finishes and 19 Top 10 World cup placements throughout her career. Her biggest moment came when she finished fourth at the 2023 World cup while battling the flu.
Slopestyle
Women
Lily Dhawornvej
Lily Dhawornvej qualified for her first Winter Olympics at only 16 years old. Born in Littleton and raised in Frisco, she earned a spot at the 2025 Winter X Games by placing second in Next X and third in Street Style Pro at the 2024 Copper Mountain X Games. She went on to win bronze in the women’s snowboard Knuckle Huck. This year, she earned her first World Cup podium finish by placing second overall in women’s slopestyle. Dhawornvej has eight Top 10 finishes in the World Cup this season.
Men
Jake Canter
Canter’s first-ever World Cup win was huge. The Evergreen native punched his first-ever trip to the Winter Olympics with a win in the men’s snowboard slopestyle at the Toyota U.S. Grand Prix earlier this month. Canter also has two career podium finishes on the World Cup circuit.
Red Gerard
The Cleveland native and Silverthorne resident is hoping to return to the podium in his third career Winter Olympics. Gerard took home gold at the 2018 Winter Games and finished 4th in 2022. He’s won two consecutive gold medals in 2024 and 2025 and has earned two silver medals during this season’s World Cup.
Ollie Martin
The 17-year-old Wolcott resident heads to his first Winter Olympics after placing third in the big air event at a World Cup event in Steamboat Springs. Last year, Martin also earned his first World Cup victory at the Calgary Snow Rodeo becoming the youngest male rider to win a World Cup slopestyle event. He also placed third in slopestyle and big air at the 2024 World Championships.
