CORTINA D’AMPEZZO, Italy — Elana Meyers Taylor’s boys are too young to realize that mom is an Olympic champion. Kaillie Armbruster Humphries’ son just wanted to play in the snow around the medals podium where his mom had just stood.

But every woman who’s ever tried to juggle motherhood and a career, who’s felt as if she’s giving everything she’s got and more and still coming up short, they’ll know. And Meyers Taylor and Armbruster Humphries hope they’ll see a little of themselves in the two women on that Olympic podium.

“I hope it shows that just because you’re a mom doesn’t mean you have to stop living your dreams,” said Meyers Taylor, who finally got the Olympic gold medal she has so long sought by winning the monobob on Monday, Feb. 16, finishing ahead of Germany’s Laura Nolte and Armbruster Humphries.

The standards for any woman are impossible. Add a family, in whatever fashion it is, and it gets exponentially more difficult. Add getting older, in a society that considers women over the hill before they’re eligible to run for president, and you might as well be scaling the mountain on which the Milano Cortina bobsled track is located.

Meyers Taylor and Armbruster Humphries have felt that. Have felt all that.

Two nights ago was the first time Armbruster Humphries had been apart from her son since he was born and it gutted her. She knew she needed rest – she is competing in the Olympics, after all – and she wouldn’t get it with a toddler who still wakes up in the middle of the night.

That didn’t make it any easier.

“My husband is here, my parents are here, my in-laws are here. So I knew he was in really good hands,” Armbruster Humphries said. “So for me, it’s compartmentalizing probably more than anything. Recognizing that mom guilt is a thing and it existed, but that I needed to do it in order to be my best.”

Meyers Taylor and Armbruster Humphries are the first to acknowledge they are not doing it alone. They both have husbands who are supportive and, as former bobsledders, understand the grind. They have families who pitch in.

The U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee provides resources, financial and otherwise, for its athletes who are mothers, which isn’t something a lot of women can say.

But no one else can quiet the voice in her head that every working mother has. No one else can weigh the conflicting choices and decide what sacrifices are acceptable. No one else can tell them it’s OK when priorities change or give them permission to put themselves first.

“This medal is also for all those moms who weren’t necessarily able to live their dreams, but their kids are now their dreams,” Meyers Taylor said. “Because those people keep me grounded. Those people kept me going. And those people are the ones who reached out to me when things got hard and encouraged me to keep going.”

And as they stood atop the medals podium with their little boys watching, Meyers Taylor and Armbruster Humphries hoped they gave other moms that same type of encouragement.

It doesn’t matter if they are chasing Olympic medals or just trying to get through the day. These two badass women understand and empathize with the struggles because they face them, too.

“I hope that it inspires other people to go out and chase their dreams, whatever it may be,” Armbruster Humphries said. “I grew up in the sport when, if you have kids, once you get to 40, it’s all downhill. And Elana and I get to be proof that that’s not true.

“It might look different then when you’re 20, but it doesn’t mean that you can’t stand on top of the podium. It doesn’t mean you can’t go out there and achieve your dreams.”

It’s not easy, this juggling act. But for everyone who does it, those Olympic medals around the necks of Meyers Taylor and Armbruster Humphries are for you, too.

Follow USA TODAY Sports columnist Nancy Armour on social media @nrarmour.

LIVIGNO, Italy — Mac Forehand’s first two jumps were so good that he could take it easy on his third and still win the evening.

Two other Americans – Troy Podmilsak and Konnor Ralph – scored well enough to advance, too, and all three are promising to come out swinging with bigger and better tricks in the final at the 2026 Winter Olympics.

Yeah, Feb. 15 was a good night for Team USA in the men’s freestyle skiing big air qualifying.

“I don’t want to jinx them,” said teammate Alex Hall, “but I think we are going to get at least one or two medals in the big air. They are riding so good. It’s so fun to watch.”

One quarter of freeski big air’s 12-man Olympic final on Feb. 17 will be comprised of Americans who’d already competed in these Games in slopestyle.

Same goes for the men’s slopestyle snowboarding qualifying final on Feb. 18. Three USA riders qualified – also on Feb. 15 – for that final. Ollie Martin, Jake Canter and Red Gerard were in the big air previously in snowboarding.

So what does slopestyle have to do with big air? That seems a popular question.

Qualifying Olympians in snowboarding and freestyle skiing are automatically added – or forced, you might also say – to compete in both slopestyle and big air. There is a systematic connection between these two events despite clear differences. Slopestyle is contested on a longer course with rails and various jumps. Big air is just one jump off an enormous ramp. It’s kind of like traditional ski jumping, except athletes perform acrobatic tricks before landing.

It is entertaining. It’s more dangerous, too.

As such, it’s generally viewed as better to have slopestyle scheduled first in an Olympics, because you aren’t risking injury as much in slopestyle, whereas an injury in big air – if it’s up first – could impact both events.

Freestyle skiing got the benefit of having slopestyle first in these Olympics, while snowboarding did not.

Hall, who won silver in freeski slopestyle earlier in these Olympics, was the lone American not to make it out of the Feb. 15 big air qualifying.

“I just love slopestyle way more, honestly,” Hall said. “… Not that one is more impressive than the other, but this is like going to war. You’ve just got to survive and do the craziest trick you can ever think of, where slopestyle is a lot about finesse and figuring out a run.”

Gerard, a former gold-medalist in snowboarding slopestyle, was critical earlier this Olympics of a format that makes him compete in both events when “I’m not a fan of big air at all,” he said. “… If I wasn’t forced to do (big air), I wouldn’t do it.”

While others haven’t voiced it as strongly, many seem to agree with Gerard and Hall. They’d lean toward a preference for slopestyle, even if they’ve performed well in big air.

“I definitely like slopestyle more,” said snowboarder Martin, who nearly medaled in big air earlier in these Olympics. “It just feels safer. You’re able to have a run going. It’s more creative.”

Canadian snowboarder Mark McMorris, a three-time bronze medalist in slopestyle, was injured during big-air training leading up to these Olympics, causing him to miss that event. He was fortunate to be able to return for slopestyle, and he has qualified for that final.

“The last two Olympics since (big air) has been added,” McMorris said, “it’s been slopestyle into big air (for snowboarding). Big air is pretty dangerous. So I definitely preferred the other way around. …

“Big air can take names. Including myself.”

With the slopestyle already out of the way in freestyle skiing, an American like Forehand said he took advantage of a bit more freedom for risks in big air.

By scoring 93.25 in his first jump and 89.75 in his second, Forehand placed first in qualifying with a 183.00 total. He is a strong contender for a medal in the big air final, and he’s not alone among Team USA.

“I’d prefer, I think, big air second, honestly,” Forehand said. “We did big air first in Beijing. I feel like you can go into big air kind of in a gung-ho attitude, like do whatever you want. You don’t have to worry about getting hurt for slopestyle.”

The playoff picture is coming into view across NCAA women’s hockey as the final week of the season approaches. 

It also means the top programs in the nation are in their final week without Olympians on their rosters. There are only two games left in Milan, Italy, with Team USA and Canada facing off in Thursday’s gold medal game, while Sweden and Switzerland face off for bronze.

This month, with many stars overseas, some players have also stepped forward individually, bolstering their 2026 PWHL Draft status.

This week, Princeton was the biggest faller, while several programs took small steps forward.

Here’s a look at the top 10 NCAA women’s hockey programs this week:

Women’s college hockey power rankings

1. Wisconsin (WCHA)

Wisconsin got an unexpected boost this weekend with the return of fifth-year forward Marianne Picard, who came back in time to finish her career with the Badgers from a leg injury that originally looked like it would end her season. She collided with a goal post and missed seven games. Lacey Eden, meanwhile, continued to climb the national scoring charts with a four-point weekend as the Badgers swept Minnesota State. Eden now sits only one point behind Abbey Murphy, who’s at the Olympics.

2. Ohio State (WCHA)

Ohio State had an impressive weekend, beating Minnesota 4-2 and 3-1. Rookie Maxine Cimoroni had two goals and two assists, while captain Jocelyn Amos had another strong weekend for the Buckeyes, helping to power their two-way game. Goaltender Hailey MacLeod has looked better facing more shots in recent weeks, but Ohio State’s crease remains its biggest question mark heading to the playoffs.

3. Minnesota (WCHA)

A pair of hard-fought losses to Ohio State were difficult for the Gophers. The return of Abbey Murphy, Nelli Laitinen, Josefin Bouveng, and Tereza Plosova from the Olympic Games can’t come soon enough for the Gophers, which managed only two goals this past weekend. Chloe Primerano scored her ninth goal and 24th point, tying her for 11th in the NCAA among defenders in scoring.

4. Quinnipiac (ECAC)

Quinnipiac beat Brown 5-2 and Yale 4-3 in overtime. As she has all season, Kahlen Lamarche continued to produce, with three goals and four points combined in those games. She now has 35 goals in 34 games this season, which has her tied for second among the NCAA’s top goal-scorers. With Team Canada looking for an influx of youth, Lamarche has thrust herself into that conversation this season.

5. Penn State (AHA)

Losing 3-2 in overtime to RIT to open its weekend won’t instill confidence in Penn State as a nationally ranked team in anyone. They remain so high because of a weak schedule. This is a significantly different team without Tessa Janecke, Matilde Fantin and Nicole Hall, who all advanced to the Olympic quarterfinals, with Janecke and Hall set to play for a medal.

5. Northeastern (Hockey East)

It was like another Beanpot weekend with Northeastern playing two other Boston schools. They beat Boston University, but were then shut out by Boston College. Northeastern’s youth have had to do a lot of lifting up front recently, and it’s come with some bumps. Defender Jules Constantinople is climbing the PWHL draft charts with her second-half play.

7. Yale (ECAC)

An overtime loss to Quinnipiac and a shutout win over Princeton made this another good weekend for Yale, which is peaking at the right time. They did squander a two-goal lead in the final 1:02 against Quinnipiac, but they carried that lead for most of the match against the Bobcats and also shut down one of the top lines in the nation with Princeton.

8. UConn (Hockey East)

UConn handled Boston University and New Hampshire with ease this weekend. With Tia Chan in net, the Huskies can beat anyone on any given night. While it could be a concern with other programs, UConn doesn’t have one player it relies on offensively. They certainly have players who score more than others and help drive possession, but this team thrives when the attack is spread out.

9. Cornell (ECAC)

Cornell beat St. Lawrence in overtime and Clarkson this past weekend. It was a good test for Cornell, which won a pair of hard-fought one-goal games. Annelies Bergmann continues to be one of the best goaltenders in college hockey, making 64 saves over the weekend. She has a 1.83 goals-against average, .931 save percentage and seven shutouts through 30 games.

10. Princeton (ECAC)

Something didn’t click for Princeton this past weekend. They opened their weekend with a shutout loss to Yale, then had Brown take them to overtime. Issy Wunder is a superstar in NCAA women’s hockey and a top prospect for the 2026 PWHL Draft, but she can’t be Princeton’s only weapon if this team wants to win.

LIVIGNO, Italy — When Team USA snowboarder Jess Perlmutter gets finished chasing medals in Italy, she’ll have homework to do.

A lot of homework.

“I had like 42 assignments missing, like last week,” Perlmutter said with a laugh. “Which is really bad. I’m usually a good student and only have like a few missing.”

Perlmutter and teammate Lily Dhawornvej will compete Feb. 17 in a final at the 2026 Winter Olympics. Each qualified Feb. 15 by finishing the top 12 of the women’s slopestyle qualifying at Livigno Sports Park, which was a heck of an achievement considering this fact:

Both are only 16 years old.

In snowboarding and freestyle skiing, that’s not too young to represent the United States in an Olympics. And particularly these Olympics. Some of brightest rising stars in Livigno have been high school aged kids. On the men’s side, 17-year-old Americans Ollie Martin (big air/slopestyle) and Alessandro Barbieri (halfpipe) have each impressed.

“We’re young,” Perlmutter said, “but it’s a pretty young sport.”

Indeed. Ten of the 30 riders in the women’s slopestyle qualifying, including Perlmutter and Dhawornvej, weren’t born before 2007. Sky Remans, who competed for Belgium, won’t turn 16 until October.

Obvious question: What are these kids doing for high school?

Answer: The majority are taking online classes that offer the flexibility to complete course work on their own timeframes while competing globally.

“My schedule just got pretty busy,” said Dhawornvej, of Colorado. “I wasn’t really home that much. Online is definitely the move. … It’s pretty hard. I’m not going to lie. I’m pretty behind on a lot of my schoolwork. But I do online school, so I can snowboard and just do it online whenever I have time.”

Freestyle skier Avery Krumme, 17, reached the finals of the slopestyle at this Olympics, finishing 11th. She is a native Canadian who chose to compete for the United States, and she does “online school through my local high school,” she said.

“My teachers are really kind,” Krumme said. “They sort of let me go slow, because they understand this takes up a lot of my time and effort, and just everything goes into my skiing and training for it. So they understand. I’ll hopefully graduate this June. We’re working up to that.”

Perlmutter, who’s originally from New Jersey, attends the Killington Mountain School in Vermont, a school geared toward helping winter sports athletes “pursue excellence on the slopes and in the classroom,” reads the school’s website.

“It’s not fully online,” Perlmutter said. “I can go in there whenever I want and do school, just like a normal school. But, yeah, I just do it from remote. … Especially at this level, pretty much everyone, if they are doing school, they are doing online or a special program or something.”

And about those missing assignments?

“Honestly,” Perlmutter said, “I’ll just tell my teachers that I’m at the Olympics.”

CORTINA D’AMPEZZO, Italy — Lindsey Vonn is back in the United States after she suffered a complex tibia fracture at the 2026 Winter Olympics, she announced on social media on Tuesday, Feb. 17.

‘Haven’t stood on my feet in over a week…,’ Vonn wrote in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter. ‘been in a hospital bed immobile since my race. And although I’m not yet able to stand, being back on home soil feels amazing.’

What happened to Lindsey Vonn?

Vonn hooked the fourth gate with her right arm, which sent her spinning and hurtling into the hard, packed snow. She tumbled end over end several times before coming to a stop.

‘Things just happen so quick in this sport,’ U.S. teammate Bella Wright said after the race. ‘It looked like Lindsey had incredible speed out of that turn, and she hooked her arm and it’s just over just like that.’

The three-time Olympic medalist remained prone in the snow, and she could be heard wailing in pain. The gasps and groans from fans faded into shocked silence as medics worked on her. Vonn remained on the course for approximately 13 minutes before being loaded into a helicopter.

What is Lindsey Vonn’s injury?

In an Instagram post on Feb. 9, Vonn shared the devastating news that she suffered a complex tibia fracture that will require multiple surgeries. The 41-year-old updated fans on Feb. 11 after a third surgery in Italy and included some gruseome photos of her progress. On Feb. 14, Vonn posted after her third surgery that she still has more procedures ahead of her, but was finally able to return to the United States.

‘Once I’m back I will give you more updates and info about my injury,’ Vonn wrote.

A tibia fracture is a break in the shin bone that is an emergency needing immediate treatment. ‘Your tibias are some of the strongest bones in your body. It usually takes a lot of force to break one,’ according to the Cleveland Clinic. ‘You probably won’t be able to stand, walk or put weight on your leg if you have a broken shin bone.’

A complex fracture involves multiple breaks in a bone and damaged soft tissue, according Yale Medicine. Symptoms include extreme pain, numbness and, sometimes, a bone that protrudes through the skin. Treatment involves stabilization and surgery.

Lindsey Vonn crash video

NBC broadcasts the Olympics and posted video of Vonn’s crash.

USA TODAY Sports’ Samantha Cardona-Norberg breaks down Linsdey Vonn’s crash just after it happened.

Fans went silent as soon as Vonn crash, reacting with shock, grief and later support as the helicopter lifted her into the sky. USA TODAY Sports talked to some fans after the crash .

Is Lindsey Vonn OK?

Vonn was in obvious pain after the crash, but she was moving her arms, head and neck.

About 18 minutes after the crash, the helicopter slowly began flying toward Cortina. ‘Let’s let Lindsey Vonn hear us!’ the American announcer said as the chopper flew away with her, and the crowd cheered and applauded.

Vonn’s sister Karin Kildow was at the course today for the downhill and spoke to NBC reporters during their live broadcast:

‘I mean that definitely was the last thing we wanted to see and it happened quick and when that happens, you’re just immediately hoping she’s okay. And it was scary because when you start to see the stretchers being put out, it’s not a good sign,’ Kildow said. ‘But she really … She just dared greatly and she put it all out there. So it’s really hard to see, but we just really hope she’s okay.

‘She does have all of her surgeons and her PT staff here and her doctors, so I’m sure they’ll give us a report and we’ll meet her at whatever hospital she’s at.’

Lindsey Vonn torn ACL

It was second time in as many weeks Vonn left a mountaintop on a chopper. She fully ruptured her left ACL, sustaining meniscus damage and bone bruising, in a downhill crash on Jan. 30, in the final World Cup event prior to the start of the Olympics.

Vonn is also skiing with a partial replacement of her right knee. She had dominated the sport before the crash, making the podium in all five downhill races this season and winning two of them.

Despite the latest injury, Vonn was determined to race at her fifth and final Olympics. She said her knee felt stable and strong, and she had spent the last week doing intense rehab, pool workouts, weight lifting and plyometrics. She skied both training runs, posting the third-fastest time in the second run before it was canceled because of fog and snow.

Lindsey Vonn torn ACL

Vonn is 41 and was skiing in her fifth Winter Olympics (2002, 2006, 2010, 2018, 2026). She has won three Olympic medals (1 gold, 2 bronze).

MILAN — For most of the 21st century, U.S. pairs figure skating has been an afterthought. 

While the men, women and ice dance sent three representatives in their respective disciplines, it became the norm to just send two pairs. Even then, they weren’t really medal favorites. It was never something Team USA boasted. 

But things appear to be changing in the right direction.

While not quiet podium contenders, the teams of Ellie Kam and Danny O’Shea with Emily Chan and Spencer Akira Howe showed the American pairs division is on the rise, starting the short program on a strong note to set up what could be a milestone finish.

Team USA’s night on Sunday, Feb. 15 began with a team that technically got in thanks to some lucky breaks. National champions Alisa Efimova and Misha Mitrofanov, as well as third-place finishers Katie McBeath and Daniil Parkman, couldn’t qualify for the Olympics due to citizenship issues, opening the door for the fourth-place finishers in Chan and Howe.

It was at the U.S. figure skating championships where the two had a rough short program, riddled with mistakes that almost took them out of Olympic contention immediately. Clearly, a month of preparation helped. 

There was a night-and-day difference in their performance, highlighted by a dazzling triple toe loop. Even better, no mess-ups.

“It was a bit of a sigh of relief and just excitement,” Chan said of her reaction when the program was finished. “We really went out there and we were together, and we experienced that whole entire program together. I just felt on the top of the mountain.”

Chan and Howe earned a score of 70.06, more than 10 points of what they got in the same program one month ago. It earned praise from 2006 ice dance medalist Ben Agosto, telling the crowd inside Milano Ice Skating Arena it was the “best I’ve seen them in a long time.”

“A big goal has always just been getting out there and feeling good, because if you can feel good, then you have your best chances of delivering what you need to do,” Howe said. “I just felt really laser focused out there.”

That set it up for the team event’s unsung heroes. After playing a critical role in the U.S. winning gold, Kam and O’Shea rode the wave from a week ago. However, the short program in the team event was tough since Kam fell on the throw triple loop. 

Since winning gold, they spent time away from the Olympic Village to pull the emotions together, but keep the good vibes going.

This time around, there was no hitting the ice. Kam was able to keep her balance on the throw, proof their plan worked.

“It feels like we were able to keep all the good momentum and the good things that we wanted to take from the team event and leave all the rest that we didn’t need behind,” she said.

Despite some minor self-inflicted mistakes from O’Shea, the pair didn’t just get a better score than the team event. They got a season-best 71.87.

“We definitely had a little more jitters,” O’Shea recalled of their first outing. “Since then, we’ve been able to settle in and really reframe and refocus on having the time of our lives. 

“The performance itself is something we’re really proud of,” he added. “We stayed on our feet, got rid of those bigger mistakes and got a season’s best.”

Improvement in US figure skating pairs

Heading into the free skate, Kam and O’Shea are in seventh place with Chan and Howe in ninth. It may not seem impressive, but it marks quite the accomplishment. With the 2022 Games, the U.S. has now had two pairs in the top 10 of the standings after the short program in back-to-back Olympics for the first time in the 21st century.

O’Shea credited Alexa Knierim and Brandon Frazier, whose sixth place finish in 2022 was Team USA’s best since 2002, for opening the door for improvement in the category, and frankly, the reason he and Kam are now partners.

“We’re only getting better,” she said.

Now, the U.S. can complete it in the free dance by having two top 10 finishers in back-to-back Olympics for the first time this century. It’s nothing to brag about, but it shows there’s an upward trend for a discipline that’s been desperately looking for one for decades.

Will either team snap the skid and be the first American pair to win an Olympic medal since 1988? Not likely, but given how unpredictable figure skating has gone in Milano Cortina, including in the pairs, nothing can be entirely ruled out.

Medal or not, the two teams are proving there’s a resurgence in pairs, and it may be a few Olympics away from finally standing on that podium once again.

“I’m so proud of what the pairs in the US have been doing,” O’Shea said. “We really hope to keep that tradition going.”