Guignard, Dhawornvej, Egadze and Beune drive a headline Olympic weekend

Mo. Basuony

Published: February 9, 2026 5:19 PM ET

Guignard

A cluster of familiar names from ice dance, figure skating, snowboarding, and speed skating pushed into focus over the last few days in Milan-Cortina, as medal rounds and team-event programs sharpened the early narrative of the Games. Charlene Guignard’s medal hunt on home ice, Lily Dhawornvej’s teenage breakout moment in snowboard big air, and Nika Egadze’s bid to put Georgia on the Winter Olympic podium all unfolded alongside a notable silver for Sabine Payer and another strong showing from Dutch speed skater Joy Beune. Off the field of play, Stanley Tucci has also become a recognizable presence around the Olympic footprint.

Charlene Guignard keeps Italy in the medal mix

Charlene Guignard and partner Marco Fabbri delivered one of the more watched ice dance performances of the team event, placing second in the free dance segment on Saturday, Feb. 7, 2026 (ET). Their score kept Italy firmly in the conversation as the sport moves deeper into its individual competition phase, where margins can come down to a single element level or a twizzle check.

For Guignard, the storyline is straightforward: an experienced team skating at home, with a real chance to convert momentum into hardware. The next tests—rhythm dance placement and clean execution under the tightest judging spotlight—will determine whether that promise becomes a podium finish.

Marjorie Lajoie adds key points for Canada

Canada’s Marjorie Lajoie, skating with Zachary Lagha, placed third in the same team-event free dance segment on Feb. 7 (ET), giving Canada valuable team points and reinforcing the pair’s steady upward trajectory. Their outing was less about flash and more about control: staying within the required patterns, protecting levels, and keeping the performance energy high enough to hold components.

In a discipline where small mistakes can cascade quickly, Lajoie and Lagha’s ability to stay composed has mattered. The bigger question now is how that composure translates when the ice dance event shifts from team strategy to individual-medal pressure.

Nika Egadze carries Georgia’s visibility push

Nika Egadze has been one of the most visible faces of Georgia’s push for recognition in figure skating, and the team event offered another reminder of how narrow the gap can be between “breakthrough” and “just missed it.” Georgia’s team placement near the podium has already made noise early in the Games, even as Egadze’s own performance carried the weight of high expectation.

For Egadze, the remaining calendar is about reset and response. The men’s event can swing wildly on jump layouts and under-rotation calls, and a single clean short program can reorder the field. The opportunity is still there—what changes next is the degree of precision required.

Lily Dhawornvej’s big air run ends short, but attention grows

At 16, Lily Dhawornvej entered women’s snowboard big air as one of the more intriguing young U.S. riders, and her Olympic debut drew outsized interest for a qualification round. On Sunday, Feb. 8, 2026 (ET), she finished outside the cut line in qualifying, ending her big air medal bid early.

Even with that result, the broader signal remains: she’s already producing at a level that keeps her in the conversation, and the Olympic stage tends to accelerate reputations quickly. For young riders, the gap between “promising” and “podium threat” often comes down to consistency—landing the biggest trick twice, not once.

Sabine Payer wins silver in parallel giant slalom

Austria’s Sabine Payer captured the silver medal in women’s parallel giant slalom on Sunday, Feb. 8, 2026 (ET), in a final that rewarded clean turns and controlled speed rather than desperation risk. It’s a discipline where a small line choice can decide everything, and Payer’s run delivered when it mattered.

The medal also slots neatly into a wider theme of these Games: deep fields where a single mistake from a favorite can open the door. Payer took that opening and converted it into an Olympic podium.

Joy Beune’s early speed skating marker

Joy Beune has been part of the Netherlands’ strength in long-track speed skating, and her appearance in the women’s 3,000 meters on Friday, Feb. 6, 2026 (ET) added another marker in an event that often sets the tone for the distance schedule. Early Olympic distance races can function like form checks—how legs respond under pressure, how pacing holds, and whether a skater’s closing lap still bites.

Beune’s next opportunities will be watched for signs of upward movement in the medals picture as the speed skating program continues.

Stanley Tucci steps into the Olympic spotlight

Stanley Tucci has emerged as one of the most visible celebrity presences around the Games, tied to on-site coverage and lifestyle segments that lean into the host-country setting. His appearances have added a different kind of conversation to the Olympic cycle—less about results, more about the cultural framing around venues, cities, and the “between events” atmosphere that defines a Winter Games.

Key developments to watch next

Whether Charlene Guignard can carry team-event momentum into an individual ice dance podium
How Marjorie Lajoie handles the shift from team format to medal-round intensity
Nika Egadze’s response in the men’s event after the team competition spotlight
What comes next for Lily Dhawornvej after an early big air exit, and whether other events offer another opening