ST. LOUIS — The U.S. figure skating team for the 2026 Winter Olympics was revealed Sunday after four days of competition at the national championships.
The roster, comprised of 16 skaters, includes some of the biggest stars in figure skating, including Ilia Malinin, Amber Glenn and Alysa Liu. Veteran ice dance pair Madison Chock and Evan Bates are in for their fourth Games together while Malinin and Glenn will make their Olympic debuts in Italy and Liu is headed for her second Games.
Isabeau Levito grabbed the last spot on the women’s side with Andrew Torgashev and Maxim Naumov joining Malinin on the men’s side.
Here are all the updates and reactions from the U.S. figure skating Olympic team reveal.
Who’s on US figure skating Olympic team?
The U.S. Figure Skating selection process focuses on the athlete’s body of work over the last two seasons.
- Men: Ilia Malinin, Andrew Torgashev, Maxim Naumov
- Women: Amber Glenn, Alysa Liu and Isabeau Levito
- Ice dance: Madison Chock and Evan Bates; Emilea Zingas and Vadym Kolesnik; Christina Carreira and Anthony Ponomarenko
- Pairs: Ellie Kam and Daniel O’Shea; Emily Chan and Spencer Akira Howe
Ilia Malinin makes first Olympic team
The “Quad God” is ready to shine on Olympic ice. Malinin is arguably the best skater on the planet, fully equipped with an elite arsenal others aren’t able to match, headlined by the quadruple Axel that earned him the nickname. He has dominated the competition, winning every event he’s been in since December 2023, including two World Championships. He will be the favorite to win America its second straight gold in men’s after Nathan Chen did in 2022.
Malinin on making the team: ‘It’s honestly a lot of work internally. A lot of people don’t see it from us because we come out here and perform when you have to be at our best out here for you guys, but it’s really a struggle for us behind the scenes and we all of you appreciate all of our energy and everything we’ve put out here and it just means so much to make this Olympic team.”
Watch our exclusive conversation with Ilia Malinin in the debut episode of ourMilan Magic Olympics podcast. Subscribe and listen:Apple Podcasts |Spotify |Amazon
Amber Glenn makes first Olympic team
After just missing out in 2022, Amber Glenn had a sensational season that left no doubt she would make her first Olympics. A fierce and powerful skater that is among the best in technical skill, she excelled at the U.S. championships for her third consecutive title, the first woman to accomplish the feat since Michelle Kwan. She can win medals at the Games. She is a major mental health advocate and has helped change the conversations about it in figure skating.
Glenn on the feeling of being an Olympian: ‘It’s doesn’t feel real. I’ve been working at this for so, so long and I wouldn’t be here without the people behind me.’
Alysa Liu makes second Olympic team
Reigning world champion Alysa Liu retired in 2022 and has been nothing but marvelous since returning in 2024. She made a major statement by winning the 2025 world championship and capped off the year by winning the Grand Prix final, assuring she would return to the Olympics. She had two silver medals in the last two U.S. championships. She is very creative in her programs and with her carefree attitude, Liu possess the talent to win some hardware in Milano Cortina.
Liu on how different this feels from 2022: ‘Well, I’m not the youngest this time so I’m feelin’ older. Not really, but I’m really, really good and there’s people in the crowd, so I’m feeling the support.’
Liu on how she feels with this team announcement: ‘At 16, oof, I would’ve been so mad to see me up there,’ she said, motioning to the arena big screen, ‘but me right now, I’m really happy.
Maxim Naumov makes first Olympic team
It was less than a year ago that Maxim Naumov lost his parents in the midair plane crash near Washington, D.C., that devastated the figure skating community. Despite the immense loss, Naumov persevered and put on an incredible performance at the U.S. championships, including an emotional short program.
Naumov was the sentimental favorite to get the third spot on the Olympic team, and he did it. His performance afterward drew a standing ovation from the crowd as the emotions were out inside the Enterprise Center. Naumov covered his face with his hands almost in desbelief after he put on his official Team USA jacket.
Naumov on this moment: ‘We did it. We absolutely did it. God is good. God is good. Every day, year after year, we talked about the Olympics. It means so much in our familly and it’s what I’ve been thinking about since I’m 5 years old … So I can’t say into words how much this means to me.’
Naumov on the support he’s gotten the last year: ‘Unbelievable. Every message, every letter, every call, every text, I see it and it helps me.’
Naumov on what his parents would think of this moment: ‘I really hope that my mom watched because she never used to watch me skate. But they say we’re proud of you, but job’s not finished, we’re just getting started.’
Isabeau Levito lands on first Olympic team
Isabeau Levito, the 2023 national champion, defines beauty and grace on the ice that propelled her to a third place finish at nationals this week. The Olympics will be somewhat of a homecoming for her family as her mom is from Italy and she has family in Milan. She also speaks Italian and Russian.
Levito on what she’ll remember most from this week: ‘How perfect it went in, my opinion. This was my goal and my dream, and it feels so special that it came true.’
Levito on being able to skate in front of family in Italy: ‘Just crazy because this is what we all dream of and they’ve always supported my skating career. Just to be able to watch me in person, in real life, on the biggest stage is just insane.’
Chock and Bates make fourth Olympic team
The ice dance pair of Madison Chock and Evan Bates are headed to their fourth Olympics together. This comes on the heels of winning their fifth straight U.S. title and seventh overall. Their moms gave them their official Team USA jackets as they skated off the ice in a sweet moment.
Bates on what the tears after the free dance were about: ‘These guys,’ he said, motioning to their moms, ‘all of you, I mean, this is so special in an Olympic year to have support.’
Andrew Torgashev makes first Olympic team
Torgashev on the feeling of making the team: ‘The reality is better than what I imagined. My God, this is awesome.’
Torgashev on having his family with him: ‘It’s amazing. These are the peple that have my back through thick and thin, no matter what the weather is, they’re always here. I don’t have the words to extend my appreciation to them and thank you so much.’
Jason Brown misses Olympic team
With Andrew Torgashev and Maxim Naumov announced as two of the men’s skaters, and Ilia Malinin as a lock on the final spot, that means there won’t be a third Olympic appearance for Jason Brown.
It’s a tough break for the figure skating veteran. The beloved skater was the reason Team USA earned three spots in the men’s discipline. Going into U.S. championships, he seemed like a likely choice for the Olympic squad. However, he struggled immensely in the free skate, and it dropped him all the way to an eighth place finish. It ultimately cost him a chance to return to the Olympics.
Emily Chan and Spencer Akira Howe score final pairs spot
No top three finish this week, no problem for Emily Chan and Spencer Akria Howe as they secured the final pairs spot. They’ve had fourth place finishes at the last two U.S. championships.
Chan on how they rallied after the short program: ‘It’s been such a dream, even from the beginning, after what happened and how it ended up. We’ve stuck together and it’s still a dream.’
Howe on taking time off for basic training: ‘I just have to say a big thanks to the Army with that support, and me and Emily, it was a crazy roller coaster and through it all, I told her after the short, ‘Job’s not finished,’ and now here we are. It’s literally a miracle.’
Ellie Kam and Daniel O’Shea celebrate with Pitbull medley
The first Olympic appearance for Kam and O’Shea results in a showcase program that is to a medley of Pitbull. It’s an exciting program full of lifts that includes O’Shea diving underneath Kam’s legs, and they had plenty of family on hand to celebrate the achievement.
Emilea Zingas and Vadym Kolesnik make first Olympic team
Zingas and Kolesnik have turned it up when it mattered, reaching the podium in four of the five events this season, capped off with the second place finish at the 2026 U.S. championships that punctuated the resume to send them to the Olympics. Kolesnik was born in Ukraine and obtained his American citizenship over the summer. They are also a couple, in a relationship since 2022.
Christina Carreira and Anthony Ponomarenko snag final ice dance spot
Christina Carreira and Anthony Ponomarenko have been in the top five of every event they’ve done since 2024, and they’ve placed in the top five of the past four U.S. championships, including two second place finishes. Their selection comes right on time as Carreira, a Canada native, obtained her American citizenship in November. Before then, they would drive across the Canada-U.S. border every day for practice.
US figure skating Olympic team alternates
- Women’s alternates: Bradie Tennell, Sarah Everhardt, Starr Andrews
- Men’s alternates: Jason Brown, Tomiki Hiwatashi, Jacob Sanchez
- Pairs alternates: Audrey Shin and Balazs Nagy; Valentina Plazas and Maximiliano Fernandez; Chelsea Liu and Ryan Bedard
- Ice dance alternates: Caroline Green and Michael Parson; Emily Bratti and Ian Somerville; Oona Brown and Gage Brown
Who won U.S. figure skating championships?
Ilia Malinin won the men’s title, Amber Glenn won the women’s crown. In ice dance, Madison Chock and Evan Bates won their seventh national title. In pairs, Alisa Efimova and Misha Mitrofanov took the championship.
When do 2026 Winter Olympics start?
The opening ceremony for the Milano Cortina Games is Feb. 6. The closing ceremony is Feb. 22.
‘Quad God’ of figure skating: Ilia Malinin’s nickname
Simply put, Ilia Malinin has the greatest array of jumps any figure skater in history has ever possessed. He’s launched himself into the air for seven quadruple jumps in a single long program at last month’s Grand Prix Final and was the first skater to land a quad Axel.
Malinin’s username used to be Lutz God, but he changed it to Quad God after landing his first quad jump.
“i didn’t think much about it … Days go by and people started asking, ‘Why’d you name yourself Quad God, you only landed one jump,’’ he said on Milan Magic, USA TODAY’s new Olympics podcast that drops its first episode Saturday. ‘And then I was like, ‘Oh, OK maybe I should be come a Quad God.’ From there I found my rhythm of landing quad after quad after quad and then of course landing the first quad axel.”
“In the most humble way possible, I think it’s definitely helped my confidence in not only to skating in general but just feeling like I deserve to be recognized as who I am.”
Amber Glenn, Alysa Liu on their friendship
USA TODAY Sports’ Jordan Mendoza spoke to Amber Glenn and Alysa Liu on the tight friendship they have formed. Here’s what they said.
What Liu said about Glenn: “She’s just such a big sister to me. The idea that we compete against each other, it’s so weird to me. I really just see her as one of my friends and truly one of my teammates. I don’t know, doing things with her is really fun.”
When Glenn said about Liu: “It’s been great to have someone that has such a positive outlook on skating and on her career around me. And then on the flip side, I have an extra pair of tights if she rips them and doesn’t have a backup, or I have the schedule ready because she doesn’t have it.”
Ilia Malinin’s parents
Malinin was born into figure skating. His mother, Tatiana Malinina, is from the Soviet Union, Siberia specifically, and competed at 10 consecutive world figure skating championships for Uzbekistan. She finished eighth at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, the competition in which Tara Lipinski won the gold medal and Michelle Kwan the silver. Malinina finished fourth at the 1999 world championships as well, and she also competed at the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics, but withdrew after the short program with the flu.
Malinin’s father, Roman Skorniakov, represented Uzbekistan at the same two Olympics, 1998 and 2002, finishing 19th both times. He and Malinina were married in 2000 and became skating coaches in the United States, moving to the Northern Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C., where, in December 2004, Ilia was born. He took the Russian masculine form of his mother’s last name because his parents were concerned that Skorniakov was too difficult to pronounce.