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≡ TEAM USA: 2026 WINTER PARAS ≡
The U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee announced a 72-member team for the Milan Cortina Winter Paralympic Games that will start on Friday.
Per the USOPC announcement, it’s an impressive squad:
“The 2026 roster features 48 men and 20 women (not including [four] guides) and an impressive group of 44 returning Paralympians, including two seven-time Paralympians, one five-time Paralympian, three four-time Paralympians, eight three-time Paralympians, 12 two-time Paralympians, 18 one-time Paralympians and 24 athletes making their Paralympic debut.
“The resume of veterans includes 25 medalists who have earned a combined 54 gold medals from 89 Paralympic podium appearances. Twenty athletes have won multiple Paralympic medals with 14 winning multiple Paralympic gold medals.”
The most-veteran athletes include:
● Oksana Masters (Nordic Skiing): winner of 19 Paralympic medals, including nine in Cross Country skiing (3-4-2), five in biathlon (2-3-0) and five in Paralympic Games sports, including cycling (3-0-0) and rowing (0-0-1), between 2012-24. This is her fourth Winter Paralympic Games and she has won the most medals of any American Winter Paralympic athlete.
● Dan Cnossen owns seven Winter Paralympic medals, in Cross Country skiing (0-2-1) and biathlon (2-2-0).
● Kendall Gretsch has seven Paralympic medals, in Cross Country skiing (1-0-0), four in biathlon (2-1-1) and two (1-1-0) in Para triathlon.
● Laurie Stephens has also won seven career Winter Paralympic medals, all in Alpine skiing (2-2-3), in 2006-10-14-18.
The U.S. sled hockey team has won four Paralympic Winter Games golds in a row and five of the last six and will try for a fifth in a row, by far the most ever (more on the drive-for-five here).
Masters and Aaron Pike, primarily a wheelchair marathon racer, but who also competes in Cross Country skiing and biathlon, will both be seven-time Paralympians.
This is a pretty big team for the USOPC, only slightly smaller than the 2024 Sochi team; U.S. participation in this century includes (medal performance in parentheses):
● 65 in 2022 Beijing (20: 6-11-3)
● 68 in 2018 PyeongChang (36: 13-15-8)
● 74 in 2014 Sochi (18: 2-7-9)
● 50 in 2010 Vancouver (13: 4-5-4)
● 56 in 2006 Turin (12: 7-2-3)
● 57 in 2002 Salt Lake City (43: 10-22-11)
About 665 athletes are slated to compete in the Milan Cortina Paralympics, in 79 events across six sports.
NBC will have 270 hours of coverage, including on USA Network and CNBC, as well as its streaming service Peacock.
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