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American speed skater Mia Manganello won a bronze medal in the women’s mass start Saturday at the Milan Speed Skating Stadium in her final race.
Manganello, 36, made a last-lap push to land her on the podium. Holland’s Marjike Groenewoud won gold, while Canada’s Ivanie Blondin narrowly edged out Manganello to win silver.
For Manganello, it was her first individual medal in three Olympic appearances. She won a bronze medal in the women’s team pursuit at the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympic Games.
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Mia Manganello of the United States celebrates winning the bronze medal in the women’s mass start speed skating final race at the 2026 Winter Olympics. Milan, Italy, February 21, 2026. (Ben Curtis/AP Photo)
However, Manganello’s journey to the podium has not been linear. The Crestview, Florida, native competed in two U.S. Olympic Trials in speed skating for the 2010 Vancouver Games but did not make the team.
She then switched sports and became a professional cyclist. After six years, she returned to speed skating in 2016 and made the U.S. team for the Pyeongchang Games, winning the aforementioned bronze medal in the women’s team pursuit.
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Mia Manganello of the United States celebrates winning the bronze medal on the podium in the mass start race at the 2026 Olympic Winter Games. Milan, Italy, February 21, 2026. (Photo Luca Bruno/AP)
In the 2022 Beijing Games, Manganello finished fourth in the women’s mass start, just missing the podium. In 2025, Manganello won his first International Skating Union (ISU) World Cup mass start race.
In her last Olympic race, she took home bronze.
Manganello’s bronze medal is the U.S. women’s first medal in speed skating at the 2026 Cortina Olympic Games in Milan.
Mia Manganello of the United States, left, is congratulated by teammate Greta Myers after winning the bronze medal in the women’s mass start final speed skating race at the 2026 Winter Olympics. Milan, Italy, Feb. 21, 2026. (Bernat Armangue/AP Photo)
There was another American in the race, Greta Myers, who finished 12th. Myers and Manganello embraced after the race.
Manganello’s bronze medal gave the United States 31 medals for the Olympic Games, which broke a tie with Italy for the second most medals. Norway has the most total medals with 40.
