The U.S. males’s sled hockey staff celebrates after profitable its fifth straight Paralympics gold medal on Sunday.
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Stefano Rellandini/AFP through Getty Pictures
Workforce USA completed second within the total Paralympics medal depend, after 10 days of competitors by which American athletes made dazzling debuts, defended titles and cemented legacies.
One of many many made-for-TV moments got here simply hours earlier than the closing ceremony on Sunday, when the U.S. sled hockey staff defeated rival Canada to assert its report fifth gold medal in a row.
“You do not ever begin out and attempt to be the one five-time gold medalist within the sport,” mentioned captain Josh Pauls after personally attaining that very feat. “However to be with these guys, to guide them and sort of cross on that custom, it is the last word honor.”
The day — and the Video games — ended with the closing ceremony in Cortina d’Ampezzo, that includes performances, speeches and the extinguishing of the Paralympic flame. American skiers Kendall Gretsch and Andrew Kurka, who’re each leaving Italy with new medals, carried the flag for Workforce USA.
“I have been concerned in 4 Video games and have solely been capable of go to 2 closing ceremonies: in PyeongChang, the place I received my gold and silver, and this 12 months, the place I received my bronze,” mentioned Kurka, who medaled in males’s super-G. “It has been a profession full of ups and downs, however even the small victories depend for me.”
Andrew Kurka and Kendall Gretsch carry the U.S. flag throughout the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Paralympic Video games closing ceremony in Cortina on Sunday.
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On the ceremony, Worldwide Paralympic Committee (IPC) President Andrew Parsons declared the Video games — the fiftieth anniversary of the Winter Paralympics — formally over, and a hit: “The largest and most lovely Winter Paralympics with extra athletes, extra nations, extra ladies and extra world broadcast and digital protection than ever earlier than.”
A report 611 athletes from 55 nations competed in 79 medal occasions throughout six sports activities.
China topped the medal depend for the second Winter Video games in a row, with 44 complete medals (15 gold), adopted by the U.S. with 24 complete medals, together with 13 gold. The U.S. improved on its fifth-place standing from 2022. This is similar variety of gold medals it received in 2018, in what officers are calling its “strongest gold-medal exhibiting within the final 20 years.”
A complete of 28 American Paralympians and two guides reached the rostrum this 12 months. Six of them received medals for the primary time, and 6 of them earned a number of medals, in keeping with the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC).
In third place — each total and in gold medals — was Russia, which was allowed to take part underneath its personal flag for the primary time since 2014 regardless of its ongoing warfare in Ukraine. Ukrainian athletes boycotted each the opening and shutting ceremonies in protest.
However even in a second of intense geopolitical upheaval, amid conflicts in Europe and the Center East, the IPC’s Parsons mentioned the Paralympics supplied “proof that sport can unite us by respect, equity and human achievement.”
“Paralympians, you rose above strain, expectation and world rigidity to maintain the main target the place it belongs: on you and your sport,” he mentioned. “You expanded the creativeness of the world. You could have proven that excellence is common and that dedication is aware of no boundaries.”
Parsons handed the proverbial torch to the following Winter Paralympics host: the French Alps for 2030. These will observe the 2028 Summer time Olympics and Paralympics in Los Angeles.
Workforce USA highlights
Workforce USA’s Declan Farmer, middle, fights for the puck throughout the gold-medal match towards Canada.
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Antonio Calanni/AP
On the ice:
The U.S. sled hockey staff acquired off to a robust begin in an early-round match towards Italy, when it beat the host nation 14-1 — the most important margin of victory within the sport’s U.S. historical past.
It stayed dominant, outscoring opponents 46-6 all through the match earlier than turning into the primary Paralympic or Olympic staff to win 5 consecutive winter gold medals.
“You’ll get pleasure from one thing like this, for certain,” Coach David Hoff mentioned afterward. “However I do not know if it is simply the wins. It is a lot greater than that. They only love taking part in collectively.”
Workforce USA beat Canada 6-2 on Sunday, because of a hat trick from Jack Wallace — who was named “finest defender” of the match — and objectives by Kayden Beasley, Brody Roybal and four-time Paralympian Declan Farmer.
Farmer, the highest scorer and official MVP of those Video games, scored 15 objectives and 26 factors all through the match to turn out to be the all-time main scorer in Paralympic sled hockey historical past at simply 28 years previous. However he was fast to share the credit score together with his teammates.
“A number of the fellows stepped up and had their finest video games of the match, and we simply carried one another,” mentioned Farmer. “I am simply so pleased for the fellows, we earned it collectively.”
You are forgiven when you have deja vu from final month: This win makes the U.S. the primary nation to comb all three Olympic and Paralympic hockey tournaments in a single 12 months.
Workforce USA additionally made historical past in wheelchair curling, with Steve Emt and Laura Dwyer ending fourth within the brand-new blended doubles occasion. That is the USA’ best-ever Paralympic end within the sport.
“Within the two years we have been collectively, we have proven the world what we’re able to doing and we’ll go residence, take a while off, calm down, re-group and are available again even higher subsequent 12 months,” mentioned Emt, probably the most adorned Paralympic roller in U.S. historical past.
In Para Nordic Snowboarding (cross nation and biathlon):
Oksana Masters competes within the para cross-country snowboarding 20km in Tesero, Italy, on Sunday.
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Eight-time, dual-season Paralympian Oksana Masters, probably the most adorned Winter Paralympian in U.S. historical past, is leaving Italy with 4 new gold medals and a bronze in biathlon and cross-country snowboarding occasions, bringing her profession complete to 24 medals.
That is regardless of a concussion, an infection and harm that nearly saved her from competing within the first place.
“I feel that’s what makes it so particular, as a result of nothing is assured,” Masters informed NPR on Saturday. “A win’s not assured, and the rostrum’s not assured, and in order that’s been a extremely nice motivator for this entire … 12 months up to now.”
4-time Paralympian Jake Adicoff, with guides Reid Goble and Peter Wolter, received 4 gold medals in 4 visually impaired snowboarding occasions to set a brand new report for probably the most Para cross-country golds received by a Workforce USA athlete in a single Video games.
Joshua Sweeney, Oksana Masters, Sydney Peterson, Jake Adicoff and his information Reid Goble of Workforce USA take part within the medal ceremony after the para cross-country snowboarding blended 4×2.5km relay.
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“It is extremely scary to place a excessive purpose out to the general public,” the 30-year-old mentioned. “I used to be doubting it a lot this week, I did not know what was going to occur, however the races got here collectively and I am simply overjoyed.”
A kind of was the blended 4×2.5km relay, the place the all-star staff of Adicoff, Masters, Josh Sweeney and Sydney Peterson got here from behind within the ultimate leg to defend the U.S. title.
Peterson, competing in her second Paralympics, received 4 medals — three of them gold — this time round.
And Kendall Gretsch, closing ceremony flag-bearer, received 4 medals at her third Winter Paralympics (and fifth complete): one gold, one silver and two bronze. That brings her complete medal depend to 11 throughout Summer time and Winter Video games.
In Alpine snowboarding:
Andrew Kurka competes within the super-G leg of the para Alpine snowboarding males’s mixed.
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Andrew Kurka received bronze within the males’s super-G sitting, including to his silver and gold from 2018.
“I am pleased to be right here. I am pleased to have an awesome profession. Gold, silver, and bronze, pleased to be performed,” mentioned Kurka, who wrote on Instagram after the closing ceremony that he’s stepping again from ski racing to take care of accidents.
In 2022, he competed with a damaged nostril, thumb and humerus bone, ending fourth within the sitting downhill occasion earlier than withdrawing from the remainder of competitors. Kurka mentioned in Italy that he is damaged over 20 bones in his profession.
“With regards to it, dropping is nothing in comparison with the ache of failure,” he mentioned after profitable bronze. “And when it comes all the way down to at this time, I used to be simply pleased to get throughout that end line with none accidents and in a comparatively fast time. Normally, if I cross the end line, it is fairly quick.”
In the meantime, Patrick Halgren received silver within the males’s super-G standing occasion — the primary for Workforce USA since 1998.
Patrick Halgren celebrates after profitable a silver medal within the alpine snowboarding males’s super-G standing on Monday.
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Emilio Morenatti/AP
The 33-year-old wasn’t essentially a favourite for the rostrum, having positioned twenty sixth and twenty fourth at his occasions within the Beijing Paralympics. However Halgren mentioned he felt the presence of his late twin brother Sven — his supply of encouragement to strive para Alpine snowboarding — who died in a motorbike accident in 2016. Halgren himself misplaced most of his left leg, and almost his life, in a motorbike accident three years earlier.
Halgren, who wowed the web together with his profitable efficiency and rock-star persona, devoted his win to Sven and referred to as it the “finest day of my life till tomorrow.”
“You rejoice the victories the identical because the defeats,” he added. “I have been blessed to need to develop my character during the last 11 years, dropping my leg, and will both roll over and die, or I may turn out to be the best Patrick Halgren on Earth, and that is what you are seeing.”
In snowboarding:
Kate Delson, middle, and Brenna Huckaby, proper, of Workforce U.S. pose for a photograph on the rostrum throughout the medal ceremony for the para snowboard banked slalom.
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Three-time Paralympian Brenna Huckaby leaves Italy as probably the most adorned Paralympic snowboarder in historical past.
She received bronze within the ladies’s banked slalom occasion — which she dominated in 2022 — to deliver her profession complete to 5 medals. That got here days after she completed sixth within the snowboard cross occasion, which she nonetheless noticed as a win.
“I am right here representing a really small portion of people that need to see themselves represented,” Huckaby mentioned. “They need to know that in the event that they lose their leg above the knee, life doesn’t finish. I completed that right here just by being. So I am pleased.”
First-time Paralympian Kate Delson medaled in each of these occasions, profitable gold within the banked slalom and silver in snowboard cross.
“I used to be simply stoked to be right here, I feel it is such a enjoyable course,” Delson mentioned after. “I acquired to get a medal with my teammate, [Huckaby], considered one of my finest pals on the planet, that is unreal.”
On the lads’s aspect, Noah Elliott received gold within the banked slalom, a repeat of 2018, and silver in snowboard cross to double his profession medal depend.
Mike Schultz introduced residence a bronze medal in his ultimate Paralympics, for which he outfitted many athletes with their prosthetics.
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Evgeniy Maloletka/AP
And Mike Schultz earned his fourth profession medal — bronze in banked slalom — on the final race of his third and ultimate Paralympics.
“To complete my final run and convey residence a bronze medal, that is storybook stuff there,” Schultz mentioned in an emotional Instagram video after watching a compilation of congratulatory messages from his U.S. snowboarding teammates, whom he referred to as his household.
All of the whereas, the 44-year-old outfitted many para athletes — together with some who beat him — with high-performance prosthetics, a enterprise he has run for over a decade, which he plans to pursue in retirement.
