Can the “Blade Angels” end U.S. medal drought in women’s figure skating?
The U.S. has not had a woman stand atop an Olympic podium since Sarah Hughes at the 2002 Salt Lake City Games.
Coming out of Tuesday’s short program, 20-year-old Alysa Liu sits in third position and only two points shy of overtaking Ami Nakai and Kaori Sakamoto of Japan.
Asked whether Liu thinks she can upstage Nakai and Sakamoto, she replied: “I don’t think about stuff like that. Whether I beat them or not is not my goal. My goal is just to do my programs and share my story and I don’t need to be over or under anyone to do that.”
The rest of Liu’s teammates struggled in the short program Tuesday night. Amber Glenn missed a crucial triple loop that left the three-time reigning U.S. champion in 13th place, while Isabeau Levito made enough smaller mistakes to fall to eighth place.
What time do they skate?
The women’s free skate starts promptly at 1 p.m. ET.
Amber Glenn, in 13th place, will skate first for the “Blade Angels.” She’s expected to hit the ice around 2:40 p.m.
Isabeau Levito, in 8th, will go next. She’s expected to skate around 3:45 p.m.
And Alysa Liu, in 3rd, will be at the rear of the pack. She’s expected to start around 4:30 p.m.
Alysa Liu
The 20-year-old Clovis, California, native is at the Milan Cortina Olympics after a two-year retirement.
After a 2022 Olympic debut in Beijing, two U.S. titles and a world championships bronze medal, then-16-year-old Liu retired to reclaim her teenage years after more than 10 years skating. Two years later, she announced that she was returning to the sport — but with more control over her training and routines.
Since then, she became the first U.S. woman to take the world champion title in women’s figure skating in nearly two decades. Now, she returns to Olympic ice in hopes to bring home gold alongside a powerhouse Team USA.
Amber Glenn
The Plano, Texas, native is competing in her first Olympics with Team USA at the 2026 Milan Cortina Games.
Glenn, 26, enters the Games as the three-time reigning U.S. figure skating champion. Her latest national title triumph saw her post a record-breaking score in the short program as well as personal-best marks in the free skate and overall score.
Glenn became the first woman to win at least three straight U.S. titles since Michelle Kwan, who captured eight straight from 1998-2005.
Team USA figure skater Amber Glenn says she received a “scary amount” of hate and threats after speaking at an Olympic press conference and is taking a break from social media.
Isabeau Levito
Levito, 18, is a figure skater who was born in Philadelphia and grew up in Burlington County, New Jersey. She considers Igloo Ice Rink in Mount Laurel, New Jersey, her home rink.
She’s making her Olympic debut at the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics and has been skating since she was just three-years-old. Levito has said she was inspired to take up figure skating after watching the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.
The 18-year-old comes to the 2026 Games with quite the resume. She won gold at the U.S. Championships in 2023 and a bronze medal in 2024; she took from silver at the 2024 World Championships and came in fourth in 2025.
Team USA figure skater Isabeau Levito showcases her Italian heritage expertise by spotting real and fake pasta names. How many did she get right?
Here’s the remaining Olympic figure skating schedule
Monday, Feb. 16:
- Pair skating-free skate — 2 p.m. ET/ 11 a.m PT 🥇
Tuesday, Feb 17:
- Women’s single skating-short program — 12:45 p.m. ET/ 9:45 a.m. PT
Thursday, Feb. 19:
- Women’s single skating-free skate — 1 p.m. ET/ 10 a.m. PT 🥇
Saturday, Feb. 21:
- Exhibition Gala: The exhibition gala (a non-medal event) begins at 2 p.m. ET/ 11 a.m. PT
Hockey legend Alexander Ovechkin shared something unique with U.S. figure skater Ilia Malinin ahead of the Winter Olympics.
Where and how to watch figure skating
Individual and team gymnastics events at the 2026 Olympics will air on NBC New York and USA Network. Streaming will be available on Peacock, NBCOlympics.com, NBC.com, the NBC Olympics app and the NBC app.
What Team USA members from the 2022 Olympics are returning for Milan Cortina 2026?
Of the members of the gold medal-winning team from the 2022 Olympics (Nathan Chen, Vincent Zhou, Karen Chen, Alexa Knierim, Brandon Frazier, Madison Hubbell, Zachary Donohue, Madison Chock, Evan Bates), only Chock and Bates will be returning.
Why is Nathan Chen not competing?
While Chen has not officially retired from skating, he said he would not be competing in the 2026 Olympic Winter Games as he attends medical school.
What country has won the most gold medals in figure skating?
The U.S. has won more Olympic gold medals (17) in figure skating events than any other country, and the most medals overall with 54 in total. Russia ranks second in total gold medals, with 14.
What athlete has won the most gold medals in figure skating?
Sonja Henie (Norway), Irina Rodnina (Soviet Union) and Gillis Grafström (Sweden) each won three individual gold medals each. The record for most total medals is held by Tessa Virture and Scott Moir of Canada, who have five total medals (five gold and two silver).
