Team USA has broken its record for most gold medals won at a Winter Olympics, extending its mojo with a thrilling men’s hockey victory over Canada on Sunday. The U.S. finished in second place in the overall medal count on the final day of the 2026 Winter Games.
The United States is second only to Norway, which counts 18 gold medals in the Milan Cortina Games. Freestyle skiers Christopher Lillis, Connor Curran and Kaila Kuhn, secured Team USA’s record-breaking 11th medal in mixed team aerials on Saturday, beating Switzerland, which won silver, and China, which took the bronze. The victory means the U.S. has broken its previous record of 10 gold medals set during the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City.
But the wins didn’t stop there.
The U.S. men’s ice hockey team on Sunday earned its third Olympic gold medal ever when Jack Hughes scored the overtime golden goal, beating Canada 2-1 and winning the team’s first gold in 46 years. The last gold was won in the famous “Miracle on Ice” game in 1980 in Lace Placid, New York.
President Donald Trump spoke by phone with members of the men’s hockey team following their historic victory, according to a White House official. And FBI Director Kash Patel, an avid hockey fan who flew to the winter Olympics in Italy on the FBI’s Gulfstream jet to watch the game, celebrated with the gold medalists in their locker room.
The men’s team’s result mirrors that of the U.S. women’s ice hockey team, which also dominated Canada 2-1 in overtime on Thursday. Megan Keller scored the winning goal.
The White House responded to the country’s victories by posting a picture of an American bald eagle landing on the back of a Canadian goose. It was a direct response to a 2025 post by former Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who wrote: “You can’t take our country — and you can’t take our game.” He was referring to President Donald Trump’s threats to annex Canada. Other notable winners at this year’s Winter Olympics include 20-year-old figure skater Alysa Liu, who captivated judges and a global audience with her joyful comeback routine, earning her gold in the women’s single category. Liu — making a comeback from a two-year break — also made history by becoming the first American woman to win an individual Olympic medal in women’s figure skating since 2006, and the first to win gold since Sarah Hughes in 2002. Ilia Malinin also brought home gold in the figure skating team event after backflipping on the ice.
Erum Salam is breaking news reporter for MS NOW, with a focus on how global events and foreign policy shape U.S. politics. She previously was a breaking news reporter for The Guardian and is a graduate of Texas A&M University and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. Follow her on X, Bluesky and Instagram. Recommended
The games ended Sunday with a closing ceremony at the ancient Verona Arena as the twin flames in the co-host Italian cities of Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo were extinguished.
