South Korea short-track speed skater Choi Min-jeong (front) trains with teammates at the Milan Ice Skating Arena on Feb. 4, local time, two days before the opening of the 2026 Milan-Cortina d’Ampezzo Winter Olympics. [Photo=Yonhap]
As the Milan-Cortina d’Ampezzo Winter Olympics get underway, attention is turning to star athletes chasing the all-time record for most Olympic gold medals in Winter Games history.
The Winter Olympics gold-medal record is eight, held by biathlon great Ole Einar Bjoerndalen and cross-country skiers Bjoern Daehlie and Marit Bjoergen, all of Norway. Bjoerndalen also owns the Winter Olympics record for most total medals with 15.
Several active athletes are aiming at those marks. Norway’s Johannes Klaebo is considered a leading contender. He won five gold medals at the 2018 Pyeongchang and 2022 Beijing Games and is entered in six events this time, seeking both multiple titles and a record. He also backed up his form by winning six golds at last year’s world championships.
Germany’s Tobias Wendl and Tobias Arlt, who compete in men’s doubles luge, are also in the hunt. Across Sochi, Pyeongchang and Beijing, they swept men’s doubles and the team relay, giving each athlete six Olympic gold medals. They will try for a fourth straight Olympics with two golds and a share of the all-time record.
Other athletes are chasing sport-specific milestones. China’s Gu Ailing is aiming to become the first freestyle skier to win a fourth Olympic medal. At the Beijing Games, she won two golds and a silver.
In snowboarding, Chloe Kim of the United States (halfpipe) and Austria’s Anna Gasser (big air) are each trying to become the first in their events to win three straight Olympic titles. In bobsled, Germany’s Francesco Friedrich is seeking a third consecutive double in the two-man and four-man events.
American Kaillie Humphries, competing in her fifth Olympics, is also chasing a record, aiming to break the mark for most women’s bobsled gold medals, currently four.
Among South Korean athletes, short-track speed skater Choi Min-jeong (Seongnam City Hall) is viewed as a record contender. She has three Olympic gold medals and two silvers. If she adds another gold, she will tie Chun Lee-kyung for the most Winter Olympics gold medals by a South Korean athlete with four. If she wins two more medals of any color, she would surpass the South Korean record for most total Olympic medals across Summer and Winter Games, currently six and jointly held by Jin Jong-oh, Kim Soo-nyung and Lee Seung-hoon.
The Winter Olympics gold-medal record is eight, held by biathlon great Ole Einar Bjoerndalen and cross-country skiers Bjoern Daehlie and Marit Bjoergen, all of Norway. Bjoerndalen also owns the Winter Olympics record for most total medals with 15.
Several active athletes are aiming at those marks. Norway’s Johannes Klaebo is considered a leading contender. He won five gold medals at the 2018 Pyeongchang and 2022 Beijing Games and is entered in six events this time, seeking both multiple titles and a record. He also backed up his form by winning six golds at last year’s world championships.
Germany’s Tobias Wendl and Tobias Arlt, who compete in men’s doubles luge, are also in the hunt. Across Sochi, Pyeongchang and Beijing, they swept men’s doubles and the team relay, giving each athlete six Olympic gold medals. They will try for a fourth straight Olympics with two golds and a share of the all-time record.
Other athletes are chasing sport-specific milestones. China’s Gu Ailing is aiming to become the first freestyle skier to win a fourth Olympic medal. At the Beijing Games, she won two golds and a silver.
In snowboarding, Chloe Kim of the United States (halfpipe) and Austria’s Anna Gasser (big air) are each trying to become the first in their events to win three straight Olympic titles. In bobsled, Germany’s Francesco Friedrich is seeking a third consecutive double in the two-man and four-man events.
American Kaillie Humphries, competing in her fifth Olympics, is also chasing a record, aiming to break the mark for most women’s bobsled gold medals, currently four.
Among South Korean athletes, short-track speed skater Choi Min-jeong (Seongnam City Hall) is viewed as a record contender. She has three Olympic gold medals and two silvers. If she adds another gold, she will tie Chun Lee-kyung for the most Winter Olympics gold medals by a South Korean athlete with four. If she wins two more medals of any color, she would surpass the South Korean record for most total Olympic medals across Summer and Winter Games, currently six and jointly held by Jin Jong-oh, Kim Soo-nyung and Lee Seung-hoon.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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