MILAN – From frustration to redemption, here are five things to know from Saturday, Feb. 14, at the 2026 Milan Cortina Games:
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SPRINTING FOR THE PODIUM
Laurent Dubreuil is one of Canada’s most decorated speedskating sprinters. But at the 2022 Beijing Games, he missed the podium in the men’s 500 metres by three-hundredths of a second. He earned redemption in Milan, skating to bronze in an extremely fast race. Dubreuil, from Levis, Que., took the early lead with an Olympic record time of 34.26 seconds. Three pairings later, eventual gold-medallist Jordan Stolz of the United States and silver-medallist Jenning de Boo of the Netherlands bested Dubreuil’s briefly held Olympic record. But while Dubreuil was bumped down to third, his fast time held up through the final two pairings.
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DANDJINOU FALLS SHORT
William Dandjinou arrived in Milan as the world’s top-ranked short-track speed skater and a favourite for multiple gold medals. Two individual events in, he has yet to reach the podium. The 24-year-old from Montreal finished fifth in a chaotic men’s 1,500 metre final Saturday after contact with a South Korean skater stalled his momentum with two laps remaining. Dandjinou, who did win silver in the mixed team event, gets another chance at an individual medal in the 500 next week.
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CAPTAIN CANADA
The return of captain Marie-Philip Poulin to practice on Friday was a big boost to Canada’s women’s hockey team. The sight of her in-game action was even bigger. Poulin returned from a two-game absence due to an injury and helped lead Canada to a 5-1 quarterfinal win over Germany. And her anticipated comeback was made even sweeter when she scored a power-play marker in the third period. That gave her 18 Olympic goals, tied with Hayley Wickenheiser for the all-time record. She has also now scored in five straight Olympic Games.
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CURLING CONTROVERSY
Accusations of foul play against Canada’s men’s curling team didn’t die down on Saturday. In a game on Friday, Sweden accused Canada’s Marc Kennedy of breaching the rules by touching the stone after he had already released it. Kennedy responded with a profane rebuke that earned his team a warning from World Curling. On Saturday, the Swiss men’s team alerted umpires mid-match that a member of the Canadian team was again double-tapping, according to Swiss coach and Canadian curling legend Glenn Howard. Canada lost 9-5 to the Swiss to fall to 3-1.
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SAMBA ON THE SLOPES
A South American athlete had never stepped on a podium at the Winter Olympics before Saturday. But by the halfway point, Brazil has more gold medals than Canada at the Milan Cortina Games. Skier Lucas Pinheiro Braathen turned in a powerful final run to win the giant slalom. Pinheiro Braathen’s mother is Brazilian, and his father is Norwegian. The skier known for his penchant for samba dancing started competing for Norway before abruptly retiring before the 2023 season, only to return a year later representing Brazil.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 14, 2026.
© 2026 The Canadian Press
