02/14/26 09:32
Marie-Philip Poulin to play quarterfinal against Germany
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Marie-Philip Poulin gathers with teammates before a preliminary round match of women’s ice hockey against Czechia on Feb. 9.Carolyn Kaster/The Associated Press
Captain Marie-Philip Poulin is back in the lineup for Canada’s women’s hockey quarterfinal against Germany.
Poulin missed Canada’s last two round-robin games with an injury.
She was hurt after taking an awkward hit into the boards during Canada’s 5-1 preliminary round victory over Czechia on Monday.
– The Canadian Press
02/14/26 09:02
Free condoms for Olympic athletes in short supply
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Competitors make their way through the athletes village in Cortina d’Ampezzo.Carmen Mandato/Getty Images
Athletes at the Winter Games seem to have embraced Valentine’s week with their trademark Olympic intensity, racing through their free condom supply to leave dispensers empty before the big day itself.
Some 10,000 prophylactics were distributed across the city and mountain accommodation sites by organizers, continuing a longstanding Olympic practice aimed at promoting safe relationships among mostly young, healthy and energetic competitors living in close quarters.
By Saturday the stock had run out, however, with just over a week of the sporting bonanza still to go, adding Milan to a long list of Games where demand has comfortably outstripped supply, a now almost-routine Olympic sub-plot.
“Clearly this shows Valentine’s Day is in full swing at the village,” International Olympic Committee spokesman Mark Adams told a press conference on Saturday. “Ten thousand have been used – 2,800 athletes – you can go figure, as they say.”
“It is rule 62 of the Olympic Charter that we have to have a condoms story. Faster, higher, stronger, together,” Adams joked.
While athletes are provided with free condoms at every Games, the rush in Milan has left even the athletes themselves stunned.
“I just saw that this morning. I was, like, shocked as everyone else,” Mexican figure skater Donovan Carrillo said.
Mialitiana Clerc, an alpine skier representing Madagascar, said there was nothing left in her accommodation.
“There were a lot of boxes at the entrance of every building where we were staying and every day, everything had gone from the box,” said Clerc. “I already know that a lot of people are using condoms, or giving them to their friends outside of the Olympics because it’s a kind of gift for them.”
– Reuters
02/14/26 08:54
Valentine’s Day at the Winter Olympics
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Laura Stacey and Marie-Philip Poulin of Team Canada celebrate after defeating Switzerland on day one of the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics. The married couple are playing Germany on Saturday in the quarterfinals.Sarah Stier/Getty Images
At the Milan Cortina Olympic Games, winning medals isn’t the only thing making hearts swell. From the ice rinks to the snowy hills, love is in the frozen air.
Valentine’s Day is the finals for the women’s skeleton event. That means that Kim Meylemans of Belgium and Nicole Rocha Silveira of Brazil – an international couple who play for their separate national teams – will be too busy for a romantic dinner. They told The Associated Press they didn’t even bring gifts to exchange.
But since they are together all the time, “It’s always a bit of a Valentine’s Day,” Meylemans said. “It is part of our sport every day, our love.”
Canadian hockey forward Laura Stacey and her wife, team captain Marie-Philip Poulin, have a different kind of date: playing Germany’s team in the quarterfinals in Milan.
“We have a game, we have a big game, so spending it together. We’re pretty lucky,” Stacey said. “Most people don’t get to do what they love, chasing their dreams together, and we do. So I think on February 14th, I think it’s important for us to just appreciate that and not take it for granted.”
– The Associated Press
Read more about what Valentine’s Day looks like for athletes and attendees at the Games.
02/14/26 08:30
South African latecomer Matt Smith hopes to inspire others
Three years ago, Matt Smith had never strapped on a pair of cross-country skis. On Friday, the South African lined up alongside the world’s best at the Winter Olympics, driven by a belief that it is never too late to do something you love and a desire to put the sport on the map back home.
The 35-year-old only took up the sport after moving to Norway three years ago, navigating unfamiliar snow and skis during long hours of training. Now competing on the biggest stage, Smith hopes his unlikely journey can inspire others in a country with little Winter Olympic tradition.
“It sounds crazy when you say it out loud, but three years ago I couldn’t ski at all,” Smith told Reuters. “If my story shows anything, it’s that you don’t have to start young to take something seriously if you really care about it.”
Smith finished 108th in the men’s 10-kilometre freestyle, but the result mattered less than the moment. Beaming with confidence and humour, he said that simply reaching the start line felt like a victory, and that his ambitions extend beyond his own racing.
“The art of being an athlete today is also being an educator and an entertainer,” he said.
“I take that responsibility seriously. If I can help people understand the sport and get excited about it, then I’ve done something worthwhile.”
– Reuters
02/14/26 07:38
Cross-country skiiers finish eighth in women’s 4×7.5km relay
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Canada’s Liliane Gagnon competes during the women’s 4×7.5-kilometre cross-country relay on Saturday.Maddie Meyer/Getty Images
Canada’s cross-country ski team has finished eighth in the women’s 4×7.5-kilometre relay.
The team of Alison Mackie, Jasmine Drolet, Liliane Gagnon and Sonjaa Schmidt combined to produce the top-10 finish.
The Norwegian team won the gold medal, followed by Sweden in silver and Finland in bronze.
– The Canadian Press
02/14/26 07:15
Opinion: Malinin’s epic choke could be the start of a great Olympic story
– Cathal Kelly
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Ilia Malinin reacts after competing during the men’s free skate program in Milan on Friday. The U.S. skater broke a 14-competition winning streak, coming in eighth.Francisco Seco/The Associated Press
Ilia Malinin came to Italy to make the quad look easy. He couldn’t even make it look hard. He missed some jumps and bailed on others. The crowd had been so primed to witness greatness that they cheered his successful landings right as he was in the middle of blowing them.
Just getting to the end of his program was a kind of victory. Lesser competitors might have given up. Malinin finished eightth.
The good news for Malinin is that the possibilities of his complete sporting career are suddenly much richer.
There’s something tedious about someone who is the unquestioned best at something. After a while, they render whatever they do inert. Usain Bolt did that to sprinting. Why bother watching if you know to an absolute certainty how it’s going to turn out?
Malinin was headed for Bolt status – which is not a bad thing. It would have made him a lot more money.
Now he’s something very different. Now he’s the hero on a quest.
Read more here.
02/14/26 06:22
Australia takes gold in women’s dual moguls
– Eric Reguly
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Maia Schwinghammer of Canada in action during the women’s dual moguls finals.Gonzalo Fuentes/Reuters
The dual moguls competition made its Olympic debut Saturday and it wasn’t kind to the Canadian women. None of the four in the competition – Maia Schwinghammer, Laurianne Desmarais-Gilbert, Jessica Linton and Ashley Koehler – made it far in a highly competitive field that began with 32 competitors.
Among them, Quebec’s Koehler, 22, had the best run. She lost to American Elizabeth Lemley, who had won Olympic gold in the single moguls earlier in the week, in the 1/8 final. Lemley went on to win bronze. Jakara Anthony of Australia won gold to become the first ever Olympic dual moguls champion. Jaelin Kauf of the U.S. took silver.
The conditions were tough. It snowed during the event, hurting visibility; there were several crashes.
While the dual moguls looks like a drag race, with two athletes competing head-to-head on a parallel course, only 20 per cent of the score goes to speed. Another 20 per cent goes to air (height and distance, known as amplitude) and 60 per cent to turning skills. Each duel consists of one run. The competitors make two jumps that are judged on their degree of difficulty.
With the Canadian women medal-less in the two moguls competitions, all eyes are on the Canadian men, who compete in the dual moguls on Sunday.
It will be the last Olympic event for Quebec’s Mikaël Kingsbury, who won silver in the single moguls on Thursday, taking his Olympic freestyle medal haul to four, one of them gold, over four Games. He has also won a record 100 World Cups.
Julien Viel and Elliot Vaillancourt are the other two Canadians in the event.
02/14/26 06:09
Women’s curling team drops to Great Britain
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Tracy Fleury and Sarah Wilkes during their match against Great Britain Saturday.Issei Kato/Reuters
Canada’s Rachel Homan dropped a 7-6 decision to Great Britain’s Sophie Jackson on Saturday morning at the Winter Olympics.
It was the second straight round-robin loss for Homan and teammates Tracy Fleury, Emma Miskew and Sarah Wilkes.
Canada gave up a three-point end in the third. Homan missed a double-takeout and British fourth Rebecca Morrison made a double-tap.
– The Canadian Press
02/14/26 05:00
Today’s Olympic schedule and event start times
– Globe staff
It’s another packed day in Italy with Canada’s women’s hockey team playing their first knockout game and several other Olympians taking shots at this country’s first gold medal of the Winter Games.
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Kristin O’Neill scores during a preliminary round match against Finland in Milan on Thursday.Hassan Ammar/The Associated Press
On the ice, medal-favourite William Dandjinou is racing for another chance at the short track podium in the men’s 1500m after coming fourth in the 1000m. Four Canadians are also racing for the men’s 500m speed skating podium.
Maïa Schwinghammer has another run at a moguls medal as she teams up with Laurianne Desmarais-Gilbert in the women’s dual event, and Team Canada is also racing in the cross-country women’s 4×7.5km relay final.
Here are the events to watch for, and you can find the full schedule here.
- 4:57 a.m. ET – Women’s dual moguls 1/16 finals (Maïa Schwinghammer and Laurianne Desmarais-Gilbert among Canadians competing)
- 8:05 a.m. ET – Men’s curling (Canada vs. Switzerland)
- 10 a.m. ET – Speed skating women’s team pursuit quarterfinal (Canada competing)
- 10:40 a.m. ET – Canada vs. Germany women’s hockey quarterfinal
- 1:05 p.m. ET – Women’s curling (Canada vs. Switzerland)
- 2:15 p.m. ET – Short track men’s 1500m quarterfinals (William Dandjinou among Canadians competing)
- 3:49 p.m. ET – Short track men’s 1500m semifinals
- 3:15 p.m. ET – Short track women’s 1000m heats (Courtney Sarault, Kim Boutin and Florence Brunelle)
- 4 p.m. ET – Short track women’s 3000m relay semifinal (Canada competing)
Medal events:
- 5:46 a.m. ET – Women’s dual moguls
- 6 a.m. ET – Cross-country women’s 4×7.5km relay (Canada competing)
- 7:30 a.m. Men’s giant slalom
- 8:45 a.m. ET – Biathlon women’s 7.5km sprint (Nadia Moser and Shilo Rousseau among Canadians competing)
- 11:00 a.m. ET – Speed skating men’s 500m (Laurent Dubreuil among Canadians competing)
- 1:35 p.m. ET – Skeleton women’s singles
- 1:57 p.m. ET – Ski jumping men’s large hill
- 4:35 p.m. ET – Short track men’s 1500m
02/14/26 05:00
Where to watch the Olympics in Canada
– Globe staff
CBC is Canada’s official Olympic broadcaster. The 2026 Winter Games will be available to watch on CBC through your TV provider, or to stream for free on the CBC Gem app or at CBCGem.ca.
You can also follow The Globe and Mail’s live coverage of all the latest news and analysis of the Games, on our website or mobile app.
02/14/26 05:00
Your guide to the 2026 Winter Olympics
– Globe staff
The Milan Cortina Winter Olympics have begun and are poised to be historic in more ways than one, as Team Canada and the world’s best athletes converge in northern Italy.
From hockey to figure skating and the debut of ski mountaineering, the competition will be nothing short of thrilling. But at the most geographically widespread edition of the Winter Games ever, international tensions – particularly toward the United States – will also be on full display.
Here’s everything you need to know about the Games.
02/14/26 05:00
Ask us your Olympics questions
– Globe staff
From how Canada is doing so far to what the energy is like in Italy, tell the The Globe’s Olympics team what you want to know about the Games. We’ll do our best to answer them.
Ask us your Olympics questions
What do you want to know about the 2026 Winter Games and Team Canada so far? Send us your questions, and The Globe’s journalists on the ground in Italy will try to answer them.
