The Women’s Single Free Skate Was The Final Figure Skating Event At The 2026 Winter Olympics
Since winning gold in the Figure Skating Team Event, Team USA has faced steep competition in the more specific disciplines of figure skating at the Milano Cortina Winter Olympic Games.
Returning ice dance champions Madison Chock and Evan Bates earned silver, and pairs figure skaters Ellie Kam and Daniel O’Shea failed to medal.
Similarly, Ilia Malinin, best known as the “Quad God,” saw a stunning defeat, finishing in 8th place after falling in the Men’s Single – Free Skate.
On Thursday, Feb. 19, the final figure skating event of the Winter Games was held, with 24 figure skaters competing in the Women’s Single – Free Skate.
Here, Team USA’s “Blade Angels” — a trio of figure skaters, comprised of Alysa Liu, Isabeau Levito, and Amber Glenn — performed to make a final impression in their pursuit of gold.
Blade Angels Take To The 2026 Olympic Ice One Last Time
In the Women’s Single category, the scores from the Short Program are combined with the Free Skate.
Leading the Women’s Single skate was Japan, which held 1st and 2nd place after the Short Program, with Ami Nakai in 1st place, scoring 78.71; and Kaori Sakamoto in 2nd place, scoring 77.23.
Team USA’s Alysa Liu entered the Free Skate in 3rd place, with a Short Program score of 76.59.
However, just behind Liu was Japan’s other figure skater, Mone Chiba, who could ensure a sweep of gold, silver, and bronze if Team USA faltered.
With the figure skaters taking to the ice in order from lowest Short Program score to highest, Amber Glenn was the first skater from Team USA to perform in the Free Skate… and she had much to prove after a disappointing Short Program.
Speaking with NBC, Amber Glenn said ahead of her Free Skate that “even though it’s been a treacherous journey” at the Olympics, she still wants “to remember that I thought I’d never get here.”
Beginning the Free Skate in 13th place from her Short Program score of 67.39, Glenn gave a domineering performance, scoring a 147.52 in the Free Skate. Glenn’s score kept her in 1st place for much of the event, eventually being bested by Mone Chiba of Japan.
Watch Amber Glenn’s remarkable comeback in the Free Skate, here.
Isabeau Levito entered the Free Skate in 8th place, having scored 70.84 in the Short Program. However, Levito had an early slip, missing a triple flip. This cost her, and her Free Skate score was 131.96, putting her out of medal consideration in 6th place.
See some of Isabeau Levito’s Free Skate performance, here.
As if she were channeling the gold medal, Alysa Liu’s Free Skate saw the 20-year-old Californian sport a gold sequined dress.
Throughout her skate, Liu was confident and smooth, and managed to smile for the duration.
Her flawless skate earned her a score of 150.20, and led to her immediately overtaking 1st place from Japan’s Mone Chiba, and it proved strong enough to maintain the lead over Japan’s Kaori Sakamoto (who had to skate immediately after Liu).
The pressure was on as Ami Nakai, of Japan, did her Free Skate after her initial 1st place from her Short Program performance.
Ultimately, it wasn’t enough, as Nakai landed in 3rd place after her Free Skate, with Alysa Liu maintaing her lead for the gold.
Watch Alysa Liu’s incredible gold-worthy Free Skate, here:
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