Recapping CW Connections at the 2026 Winter Olympics
Article by Brian Swane, Special to CW
Feb. 26, 2026 – The Olympic flame was extinguished last Sunday, bringing a close to Milano Cortina 2026 after more than two weeks of competition in Italy.
Many current and former Canada West student-athletes, coaches, and support staff, along with officials, physicians, and broadcasters, as well as graduates of Canada West member institutions were part of the XXV Winter Olympic Games.
Here’s a look at how athletes and coaches with Canada West connections fared at the 2026 Olympics.
University of Alberta
Marc Kennedy - Curling
Kennedy became an Olympic champion for the second time, serving as lead on the gold-medal winning Canadian men’s curling rink skipped by Brad Jacobs.
Canada advanced to the playoffs after finishing the round robin with a record of 7-2. The Jacobs rink then defeated Norway 5-4 in the semi-final, before reaching the top of the podium with a 9-6 triumph over Great Britain in the final at Cortina Olympic Stadium in Cortina d'Ampezzo on Feb. 21.
Kennedy, who earned a Business degree from the U of A in 2005, was competing in his fourth Olympic men’s curling competition. He won gold playing second in 2010, bronze as third in 2018, and served as alternate in 2022 when Canada placed fourth.
Rachelle Brown, Rachel Homan, Sarah Wilkes – Curling
Homan (skip), Wilkes (lead) and Brown (alternate) were all part of the Canadian women’s rink, which ended the country’s 12-year podium drought in women’s Olympic curling with an inspirational bronze medal victory.
Canada started off 1-3 in round robin play, before reeling off five consecutive victories to earn a playoff spot. While Canada lost in the semi-final round to Sweden, the team bounced back to defeat the United States 10-7 in the bronze medal game, giving Homan the first Olympic medal of her legendary career.
Homan, who graduated from the University of Alberta with an education degree in 2020, had previously been part of a sixth-place finish in women’s curling at the 2018 Winter Games and a fifth-place result in mixed doubles at the 2022 Olympics.
This was the Winter Games debut for both Brown, who competed for Pandas curling from 2007 to 2010, and Wilkes, who earned a degree in education from the University of Alberta in 2016.
Melissa Lotholz and Kelsey Mitchell – Bobsleigh
Former Pandas student-athletes Lotholz and Mitchell partnered to compete in 2-woman bobsleigh at the Cortina Sliding Centre in Cortina d'Ampezzo, placing 13th with a cumulative time of 3:51.53 over four heats. Lotholz also raced in the women’s monobob, finishing in sixth place with a total time of 3:59.24, just 1.19 seconds off the podium.
This was the third consecutive Olympic Winter Games appearance for Lotholz, who was part of Alberta’s Track and Field team from 2011 to 2014. Mitchell, who played for the Pandas soccer team in 2012 and 2013, was making her Winter Olympics debut after competing in track cycling at the past two Summer Games.
Dr. Helene Jørgensen – Biathlon
As part of Canada's Olympic biathlon team coaching staff, Jørgensen helped prepare athletes for events at Anterselva Biathlon Arena in Rasen-Antholz. Canada’s highlight in biathlon competition was a personal-best 24th place finish by Pascale Paradis in the women’s 15km individual race.
Jørgensen earned her PhD in Sport Psychology and Coaching from the University of Alberta Faculty of Kinesiology, Sport, and Recreation.
University of Calgary
Brett Gallant, Jocelyn Peterman, Laine Peters - Curling
Gallant captured gold in Italy, serving as second on the championship-winning Canadian men’s curling rink. He also joined partner Peterman to form Canada’s mixed doubles team, which was coached by Peters. Canada went 4-5 in round robin play to finish fifth in mixed doubles competition.
This is the second Olympic podium for Gallant, who played second on the bronze-medal winning Canadian men’s curling team at the 2022 Winter Games. Peterman also competed at the 2022 Olympics, throwing second for the Canadian women’s team, which finished fifth. Peters coached Team USA to a sixth-place result in women’s curling at the 2022 Games.
The trio are all part of the Dinos curling program: Peterman, a University of Calgary alumna, is co-founder and program director; Peters is head coach; and Gallant is skills coach.
Emily Clark, Blayre Turnbull, Brad Kirkwood – Hockey
Clark and Turnbull played forward, while Kirkwood served as goaltending consultant for the Canadian women’s hockey team, which was awarded the silver medal. Canada came up just short in a fierce battle with the United States, losing the gold medal final by a score of 2-1 in overtime at Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena on Feb. 19.
Over 7 games spanning the preliminary and playoff rounds, Canada outscored its opponents 22-10. Clark recorded two goals and an assist, while Turnbull scored once goal and added an assist.
Kirkwood is the goaltending coach for both the Dinos men’s and women’s hockey teams, while Clark and Turnbull were on Calgary’s women’s hockey coaching staff during the 2022-23 season. All three were at their Winter Games with the Canadian women’s hockey team, after being part of a silver medal finish in 2018 and gold medal triumph four years ago.
Carla McLeod - Hockey
As head coach of Czechia women’s hockey team, McLeod guided her squad to a fifth-place finish, the nation’s best-ever showing in Olympic women’s hockey competition. Czechia finished third in Group A with a record of 1-0-1-2 during the preliminary round, before losing 2-0 to Finland in the quarterfinals.
This was McLeod’s fourth time being part of the women’s hockey tournament at the Winter Games. She played defence on Team Canada in 2006 and 2010, winning gold both times, before serving as assistant coach for Japan in 2014. McLeod was head coach of the Dinos women’s hockey team from 2021 to 2023.
Dawn Richardson Wilson - Bobsleigh
For the second consecutive Winter Games, Richardson Wilson teamed with Cynthia Appiah to race in the 2-woman bobsleigh. The Canadian duo placed 14th, with a total time of 3:51.79 over four heats.
A native of Edmonton, Richardson Wilson was a member of the Dinos track and field team from 2022-23 to 2024-25.
Gabriella Durante - Hockey
Durante played goal for the Italian women’s hockey team, which was back in the Olympics for the first time since 2006. She appeared in 4 games, going 1-3-0 with a 3.44 goals-against average and .908 save percentage.
With a record of 2-0-0-2 in the preliminary round, Italy placed third in Group B and advanced to the playoff round. While Italy lost to the eventual gold medalist United States in the quarterfinal, the team’s eighth-place finish equalled its all-time best result in Olympic women’s hockey.
This was the Olympic debut for Durante, who was a member of the Dinos women’s hockey team from 2019-20 to 2024-25.
Mount Royal University
Scott Rivett - Hockey
Rivett made his first trip to the Olympics, working as an assistant coach on McLeod’s staff with the Czechia women’s hockey team at Milano-Cortina 2026. He has been head coach of the Mount Royal women’s hockey program since it joined Canada West in 2012.
University of British Columbia
Vanessa Schaefer - Hockey
Schaefer played forward in all seven games for the Switzerland women’s hockey team, helping it finish third to reach the Olympic podium for the first time since 2014. After a tremendous effort in a 2-1 loss to Canada in the semi-final, Switzerland defeated Finland 2-1 in overtime of a thrilling bronze medal game at Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena on Feb. 19.
This was the first Olympic experience for Schaefer, who is currently in her second year with the Thunderbirds women’s hockey team.