Unique sports slopes to the top in the Winter Olympics

The 2026 Winter Olympics will take place in Italy on Feb. 6-22 with Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo as the official hosts.

Around 2,900 athletes will participate in 16 sports in total with a newly added sport called ski mountaineering. 

Ski mountaineering, specifically, has gained popularity throughout the recent years. Therefore, according to ESPN, the Winter Olympics will host three ski mountaineering events for the first time: men’s sprint, women’s sprint and mixed relay. The race begins with athletes climbing up the mountain with skis that contain a climbing skin at the bottom. The skin is made of mohair or artificial fiber, which allows the athlete to safely walk up a hill. 

On steep slopes, the athletes are required to remove the skis to continue walking on foot for safety. Later, they put their skis back on to finish climbing up the hill. Once they reach the top of the mountain, the athletes remove their ski skins and ski downhill to the finish line, where the first athlete to finish wins. The women’s and men’s sprint events will take place on Feb. 19 while the mixed relay, involving a team of one man and one woman, will take place on Feb. 21. The winners will be the first ever to earn a medal for the sport of ski mountaineering in the Olympics. 

“I think it’s always cool to add new different styles of sports as times change. Historically, that’s always been what happens at the Olympics. It’s like bringing along a new sport with a new set of eyes,” social studies teacher David Park said. 

Although ski mountaineering is a sport that will be highly anticipated, other sports are also set to catch people’s attention. For example, biathlon is a sport involving cross-country skiing with rifle shooting ranges. 

Officially debuting in the Olympics in 1960, biathlon is a widely known sport in Europe but less commonly known in the United States. This sport has five formats: sprint, pursuit, mass start, relay and individual. The race begins on skis and after each lap, athletes complete shooting rounds in a standing or laying-down position. The athletes have to fire five shots from 50 meters away. A miss on the target can result in a penalty. 

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In sprint and individual races, athletes start one at a time and whoever has the fastest time wins. Sprint races involve two stops at the shooting range while individual races involve four stops. The other three formats are head-to-head races. In relay races, four athletes compete as a team with two shooting rounds. Biathlon will take place on Feb. 8 and this year, eight athletes have qualified for team USA but the team has never won a medal in the sport. 

Outside the Olympics, Biathlon is gaining more attention as investments in Biathlon centers, laser rifle programs and Biathlon ranges have increased across the country. Even though this sport is still new to many people, Biathlon has caught many people’s interest.

“It’s surprising to see a shooting sport where you are also running, since usually anything involving shooting means that you won’t be moving. I would be interested in learning more about [Biathlon] if I see it on the news possibly,” sophomore Emily Chen said. 

The other 14 sports in the Olympics are: alpine skiing, bobsleigh, cross-country skiing, curling, figure skating, freestyle skiing, ice hockey, luge, nordic combined, short track speed skating, skeleton, ski jumping, snowboarding and speed skating. 

Although the event will officially start on Feb. 6, according to NBC Olympics, several competitions for sports like curling, hockey and snowboarding will start earlier. 

Overall, the Winter Olympics is an event that unites the audience worldwide for its unique, new sports. Whether that be alpine skiing to ski mountaineering, this event showcases athletes skills and talent of a distinctive sport that many people find interest in. 

“I love the Winter Olympics,” Grade Level Coordinator Jeff Jacks said. “It’s so different from what we’re used to in Southern California. Being in Southern California, we are so used to the summertime sports. The Winter Olympics features things that we don’t normally get to participate in.”