Mia Manganello ended her final Olympics race with a bronze medal win at the 2026 Winter Games in Milan. On Saturday, February 21, the American participated in the women’s mass start speed skating race and bagged her first individual medal. The 36-year-old won her last bronze medal in the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympic Games.
It was the Netherlands’ Marijke Groenewoud, Manganello and Canada’s Ivanie Blondin who were in the medal race fighting for the gold. At first, Groenewoud got ahead of Manganello, and then it was Blondin who edged past the American by 0.30 seconds. At the end of the final, Groenewoud finished with gold with a timing of 8:34.70, followed by Blondin taking the silver (8:3509), and Manganello with a timing of 8:35.39 got the bronze.
Post-victory, Manganello shares her emotional journey in the Olympic Games that ends with Milano Cortina 2026. She said, “It means everything. It means a journey for my parents, sacrificing everything, my loved ones, relationships, friends, coaches, and teammates. This is the ultimate goal. Any color, honestly.”
The American speed skater had narrowly missed the podium finish back in the 2010 Olympic Games in Vancouver. She fell short in the qualification round, after which she decided to part ways with her skates and found her passion for becoming a professional cyclist. However, six years later, in 2016, she returned to the skating rink and got herself another shot at the 2018 Winter Games in PyeongChang. It was then that she won a bronze medal in a team event.
Right after she crossed the finishing line, Manganello screamed in excitement and enjoyed the adrenaline rush after getting the victory. She was in disbelief at making a podium finish at the Olympic Games and representing America.
“Did you see me cross the line? I screamed so loud. I started bawling; there was no other emotion but disbelief. It’s the most surreal moment of my life. It’s something that I envisioned every single day since I’ve been here. It seemed so far-fetched. We discussed impostor syndrome a bit (before), not quite believing that I could be there. So to cross the line was a little bit of disbelief, even on the back stretch when I was in second, thinking to myself, ‘Hold it together, hold it together’. To cross the line, the emotion just escaped me,” she added in the interview.
