Feb. 22 (UPI) -- Norwegian dominance, a U.S. hockey sweep and figure skating upsets ignited the 2026 Winter Olympics, which concluded Sunday in Verona, Italy.
Nearly 3,000 athletes from 92 delegations participated in the Winter Games. Norway claimed an Olympic-best 41 medals in the competition that started Feb. 4 and ended Sunday inside Verona Arena.
Thousands packed the venue to commemorate the 19-day event, Athletes, fans and officials from around the world joined TV viewers in enjoying live performances, with actors, singers, musicians and dancer donning vibrant colors and showcasing the culture of Italy and the Games.
The Norwegians, who also captured the most medals at the 2022 and 2018 Winter Olympics, earned 18 gold medals at Milan-Cortina -- the most for any country in Winter Olympics history.
Cross-country skier Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo, who became the first Winter Olympian to win six gold medals in a single Games, led the Norwegians.
Hilary Knight and Evan Bates share what it means to be Team USA flag bearers in the closing ceremony. #WinterOlympicspic.twitter.com/DGRaQl4BKA— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) February 22, 2026
Speed skater Jordan Stolz, who won three medals, was among six Americans to earn multiple medals. The Americans' dozen gold medals were their most ever at a Winter Olympics. Team USA's 33 total medals trailed only Norway and were the Americans' most since 1952. Host Italy's 30 medals ranked third at Milan-Cortina.
Ice dancers Madison Chock and Evans Bates, who was a flag bearer with U.S. hockey star Hilary Knight at Sunday's closing ceremony, won two medals apiece. Figure skater Alysa Liu, bobsledder Kaillie Humphries and skiers Jaelin Kauf, Liz Lemley and Ben Ogden also claimed two medals each.
Liu provided one of the Americans' most polarizing moments of the Olympics when she became the first U.S. woman to win gold in figure skating singles in 24 years.
"I feel so lucky that I get to do this," Liu said on Sunday's NBC broadcast. "I love being an athlete. It's the coolest thing in the world."
Fellow U.S. figure skater Ilia Malinin, one of the biggest gold medal favorites entering the Games, also provided a polarizing performance when he stumbled multiple times and failed to win a medal in the men's singles competition.
But Malinin didn't go home empty handed, thanks to his participation in Team USA's gold medal performance in the team event alongside Liu, Bates, Chock, Danny O'Shea and Ellie Kam.
Like Liu, the U.S. men's hockey team ended a long drought at Milan-Cortina as Sunday's overtime win over Canada resulted in their first gold medal in 46 years. The victory -- paired with the Team USA women's victory over Canada -- gave the Americans their first hockey sweep in Olympics history.
Smiles all around after a historic performance by Team USA at the 2026 Winter Olympics!
#WinterOlympics Closing Ceremony on NBC and Peacock pic.twitter.com/P2JAsb5G3G— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) February 22, 2026
Snowstorms factored into other events at the 2026 Winter Olympics, causing schedule adjustments. Injuries also impacted Team USA. Alpine skier Lindsey Vonn watched her podium attempt end in pain and frustration after she broke her leg during the women's downhill. The 41-year-old had been aiming to become the oldest Alpine Olympic medalist at Milan-Cortina.
Alternatively, fellow Alpine sensation Mikaela Shiffrin was pristine in the slalom, capturing her first medal -- a gold one -- since 2018.
Bobsledder Elana Meyers Taylor also ended a drought, winning the first gold medal of her decorated Olympic career. The five-time Olympian's 16-year wait to top an Olympic podium ended when she edged Germany's Laura Nolte by just four-hundredths of a second in the monobob.
Chloe Kim might not have completed her goal of becoming the first snowboarder to win three consecutive gold medals, but she came as close as one could get with a second-place finish in the halfpipe.
Cross-country skier Jessie Diggins provided one of the most inspiring performances of the Olympics, fighting through a painful ribs injury en route to a bronze medal in the 10-kilometer freestyle.
The four-time Olympic medalist, who plans to retire from the sport, writhed in pain at at that finish line, but went on to finish fifth in the 50-kilometer mass start, 4x7.5-kilometer relay and team sprint, held Sunday.
"It's been an absolutely crazy day, but it's so special to be able celebrate with your team," Diggins said. "It was so special to do my last Olympic race."
Knight, her teammate Laila Edwards and curler Cory Thiesse were among other U.S. athletes to achieve groundbreaking feats at Milan-Cortina.
Thiesse won the first curling medal for an American woman. Knight became the all-time leading American goal scorer in American hockey, with her 15th career score in Team USA's gold medal game win over Canada. She also got engaged to speed skater Brittany Bowe at the 2026 Winter Olympics.
Edwards became the first Black American to win gold in women's hockey.
Sunday's closing ceremony concluded with the Olympics flag handoff, as International Olympic Committee president Kirsty Coventry and Italian officials ceremoniously transferring host duties to France for the 2030 edition of the Games.
The 2030 Winter Olympics will be held from Feb. 1 to 17 in the French Alps region.