How the Olympic figure skating ‘Blade Angels’ could break a 20-year streak

From breathtaking jumps to mesmerizing spins, figure skating is one of the most popular sports at the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026. In a survey, 56% of 1,000 Americans who planned on watching the winter Olympics said they would be tuning in to watch figure skating, according to market research from Reviews.com.

And all eyes are on the American trio of female skaters known as the ‘Blade Angels,’ on Tuesday with the start of the women’s short program. Amber Glenn, Alysa Liu, and Isabeau Levito are hoping to take home the gold in individual women’s figure skating, something the U.S. women’s team has not done since 2006.

Only the top 24 women skaters in the women’s short program will advance to the compete in the free skate final on Thursday.

Here’s what to know.

Who are the ‘Blade Angels’?

The “Blade Angels” as they call themselves, are three U.S. women’s single figure skaters representing Team USA in this year’s winter Olympics: Amber Glenn, Alysa Liu, and Isabeau Levito.

They have captivated the nation not only with their skating, but their friendship, and lively, non-conformist, authentic personalities. Glenn is the first openly LGBTQ+ woman to compete in women’s figure skating at the Winter Olympics. Their bravery and impressive skills have also garnered attention from celebrities like Madonna—who sent Glenn a video saying “Go get that gold”—and Taylor Swift, who introduced them in an Olympic video.

The three have an impressive amount of wins among them: Liu is the 2025 World Figure Skating Champion, Glenn a three-time skating champion, and Levito is the 2024 world silver medalist.

“I haven’t seen a U.S. women’s team this strong in 20 years,” Olympic gold medalist and commentator Tara Lipinski told NBC Olympics.

What’s the history of Olympic figure skating?

Figure skating was first introduced in the 1908 Summer Olympics, but didn’t become part of the winter games until 1924. From early on, it was one of the first Olympic sports with a female category, and actually the only winter Olympic sport for women until 1936.

In the years since the 1950s, the U.S. women’s team has dominated the sport, taking home the gold again and again—from Tenley Albright, who was the first woman to win at the 1956 Cortina d’Ampezzo Games, to more recently, Michelle Kwan and Kristi Yamaguchi.

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