Only USA's Alysa Liu broke up Japan's trio of Ami Nakai, Kaori Sakamoto and Mone Chiba, who finished first, second and fourth after the short program.
Minerva Hase and Nikita Volodin of Germany took a sizable lead in the Olympic pairs figure skating short program in Milano-Cortina, topping a tightly contested field ahead of Monday’s free skate.
Only a few women in Olympic history have landed a triple axel at the Games. A 17-year-old girl just joined the historic list.
Japan has set a new record for the most medals in its history by winning its 19th medal at the 2026 Milano-Cortina Winter Olympics, surpassing its previous best of 18 medals from the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.
Last updated: Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026 at 8:00 p.m. ET Top takeaway: Norway has stretched its lead to 14 gold medals and 31 total medals, while host Italy is up to 9 gold (24 total) and Team USA has climbed to 6 gold (21 total) as another wave of finals hits the standings