Milano Cortina 2026 Olympics Dates, Event Schedule and Medal Predictions

The top of the Winter Olympics medal table is typically dominated by only a handful of nations.

Norway, Germany and the United States battled for the top spot four years ago in Beijing. Canada was in the mix eight years ago with the other three nations.

Norway and Germany specialize in certain sports that typically produce large medal hauls for them.

The United States has a more diverse pool of potential medal winners from figure skating to alpine skiing to hockey and beyond.

The Americans were 12 medals off Norway's winning total in 2022. Improvement across a few sports could help the USA eclipse the 30-medal mark and challenge for the top spot in the medal table.

The full day-by-day Olympics schedule can be found here.

Norway

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Norway enters the Milan Cortina Games as the reigning winner of the Winter Olympics medal table.

Norway dominated the biathlon and cross-country skiing events four years ago in Beijing to create separation from Germany and the United States in the medal standings.

Twelve of Norway's 16 gold medals in 2022 came from those two sports. Two of the other golds came from nordic combined, an event that pairs ski jumping with cross-country skiing.

Norway will continue to thrive in those two sports. Germany and the USA must hope that Norway somehow loses a few spots on the medal podiums in those disciplines.

Norway is so successful because it not just has gold medal winners in biathlon and cross-country skiing. It typically fills out the medal position in a handful of events in those sports.

Another 30-medal haul in Italy is the expectation for the Scandinavian nation. It won the last two Winter Olympics medal tables with 37 and 39 medals.

Prediction: Norway wins 35 medals

Germany

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Germany captured 58 total medals over the last two Winter Olympics.

Four years ago, Germany came second to Norway with 31 overall medals, including nine golds in the sliding sports of luge, bobsled and skeleton.

Germany is the most successful nation in Winter Olympics history in both luge and bobsled. It has six skeleton medals as well.

The Germans are once expected to be a force in the sliding sports, which it needs to be competitive with Norway atop the medal table.

Germany also won multiple medals in biathlon, cross-country skiing, nordic combined and ski jumping in Beijing.

If Germany improves on its medal tally in any of those sports, it could be a serious contender to Norway atop the standings.

Prediction: Germany wins 29 medals.

United States

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The United States has potential to chase down Norway and Germany at the Milan Cortina Games.

A lot of that chase is dependent on an improvement across all of the figure skating disciplines.

Ilia Malinin is the favorite to win the men's event, as are Madison Chock and Evan Bates in the ice dance.

Team USA has medal contenders in the women's event as well in the form of Alysa Liu and Amber Glenn.

In Beijing, the United States won three figure skating medals. That total could easily elevate to five or six through the individual events and the team competition.

The Americans should medal in a few alpine skiing events and will be a gold medal contender in men's and women's ice hockey.

The biggest medal haul could come from freestyle skiing or snowboarding. Those two sports were responsible for 12 American medals in Beijing.

Consistency in sports that the Americans thrived at in Beijing, plus the addition of medals from figure skating and a few surprise sports could boost Team USA over 30 overall medals.

Prediction: USA wins 32 medals.