Canada, Winter Olympics and Milan
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Canada has won nine Olympic gold medals in men’s ice hockey. Their first Olympic gold medal came in 1920 at the Antwerp Summer Olympics. The team dominated for three decades before the rise of the Soviet Union. Canada’s men’s Olympic hockey gold medals came in the following years:
As the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics begin, all eyes were on teams from around the globe proudly donning their countries' uniforms for the opening ceremony, including Team USA in outfits designed by Ralph Lauren.
Men’s parallel giant slalom snowboard: Canadian Arnaud Gaudet fell to Bulgaria's Tervel Zamfirov by just three-hundredths of a second in the quarterfinals of the men's snowboard parallel giant slalom event. He out-raced Zamfirov Bulgarian teammate Radoslav Yankov to reach the quarterfinals but was unable to advance further to contend for a medal.
The Italians have 25 first-time Olympians and four NHL draft picks, including Clara, defenseman Thomas Larkin (Columbus Blue Jackets, fifth round, 2009), forward Matthew Bradley (Canadiens, fifth round, 2015) and forward Cristiano DiGiacinto (Tampa Bay Lightning, sixth round, 2014).
One of the most anticipated sports at every Winter Olympics is ice hockey. Women's hockey, in particular, comes into the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics with surging momentum thanks to the popularity of the Professional Women's Hockey League following its launch in 2023.