Milan Cortina: What to watch today in the Winter Olympics — Jordan Stolz aims for third gold, while U.S. women curling plays for bronze (2/21)

The Winter Games are wrapping up in Italy. From the rink to the slopes, a new generation of stars has emerged to chase gold. We’ll keep you connected to all of the thrilling moments and top stories as we track the medal race each day of the Games.

The Milan Cortina Olympics have been flying by faster than Jordan Stolz. The American speedskating icon will be on display once more Saturday.

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He’s one of a handful of Americans who have a shot at earning some hardware to kick off the weekend.

Here are the top five things to watch on Saturday at the Winter Games:

1. Jordan Stolz has another chance for a third Olympic gold, this time in speedskating mass start

After gold-medal performances in the 500 meters and 1,000 meters, the 21-year-old Stolz had an opportunity to become the first athlete in 46 years to complete speedskating’s sprint treble at an Olympics. But the Wisconsinite took silver Thursday in the 1,500, an event he’s mostly dominated. China’s Ning Zhongyan set the Olympic record with a time of 1:41.98, and, despite beating Norway’s Peder Kongshaug, Stolz finished a sizable 0.77 seconds behind Zhongyan’s blistering mark.

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Stolz’s final event in this year’s Games is the mass start. Earlier in the Olympics, he said that winning that chaotic race would be just “a bonus.” The mass start made its Olympics debut in 2018. It’s the only long-track race where every skater starts together. The first three racers to cross the finish line of the 16-lap final win gold, silver and bronze. The full track is at the disposal of the skaters, who jockey for positioning strategically. The race typically goes down to the wire, often with unpredictable finishes. Belgium’s Bart Swings is once again a gold-medal contender. He won the event in Beijing four years ago, and he took silver in PyeongChang.

2. U.S. women’s curling will go for bronze against Canada after falling short in semifinals against Switzerland

After making the Olympic playoffs for the first time since 2002, the U.S. women’s curling team fell short in semifinal action against Switzerland on Friday. Switzerland avenged its loss to the Americans in the round-robin finale, in large part thanks to Alina Pätz, who was practically perfect and fueled a 7-4 victory that was closer than the score suggests. Switzerland will face Sweden in the gold-medal game on Sunday. But, first, on Saturday, the U.S. will square off against Canada with the bronze medal on the line.

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The Americans have never medaled in women’s curling, which was was added to the Olympics in 1998. In Salt Lake City 24 years ago, they lost to Canada in a bronze-medal game. The U.S, is hoping to flip the script this time around. In round-robin play, the American women notched their first-ever Olympic win over a Canadian team that previously had their number.

3. Eileen Gu, Team USA’s Svea Irving and Kate Gray to compete for spot on podium during women’s freeski halfpipe final

Eileen Gu’s latest controversial Olympic run will continue on Saturday when she takes part in the women’s freestyle skiing halfpipe final. It’s her third and final event of this year’s Games. The American-born Gu notably represents China, where her mother was born. At 22 years old, she’s already a five-time Olympic medalist. While she’s yet to win gold in these Games, she’s immensely proud of the silvers she earned in the big air and slopestyle events. She’s got one more shot to stand atop a podium in Italy, and that’s in the halfpipe, one of two events she won in Beijing four years ago.

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Gu will be up against 11 other freestyle skiers, including Team USA’s Svea Irving and Kate Gray, who placed eighth and 12th, respectively, in qualifying on Thursday. Irving, the granddaughter of illustrious American author John Irving, was fifth at the 2025 World Championships. Great Britain’s Zoe Atkin led all skiers in qualifying with a 91.50. She’s a reigning world and X Games champion.

4. After letting semifinal lead slip, Finland men’s hockey will look to bounce back in bronze-medal game against Slovakia

Canada men’s hockey needed another comeback, again without captain Sidney Crosby, Friday against Finland. Two days removed from forcing overtime and surviving a scare against Czechia, Team Canada pulled out another thrilling victory. The Canadians erased a 2-0 deficit to defeat Finland 3-2.

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Now the Finnish will play Slovakia in Saturday’s bronze-medal game. Slovakia’s coming off a setback to the U.S., which is gearing up for Sunday’s gold-medal showdown with Canada.

5. Ilia Malinin will perform in figure skating’s exhibition gala after heartbreaking free skate cost him a medal in men’s singles

Ilia Malinin has been candid since he fell during his free skate and plummeted to eighth in figure skating men’s singles. In an appearance on “Today” earlier this week, the “Quad God” admitted that he “was not ready to handle” the pressure of that Olympic moment. He hadn’t lost a competition since November 2023, and he wound up missing out on an individual medal completely. The 21-year-old has received an outpouring of support, and he’s already contemplating the different approach he can take in the 2030 Games in the French Alps.

He’ll be back on the ice Saturday, not to compete but to perform during figure skating’s exhibition gala. Malinin, who did earn a gold medal in the team event, will have a chance to close out his first Games on a positive note. He’s part of a star-studded gala lineup that also features women’s singles champion Alysa Liu — the first American woman figure skater to medal in the Olympic’s individual event in 24 years — and Amber Glenn, who finished four spots behind Liu after a triumphant free skate on Thursday.

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Olympics schedule for Saturday, Feb. 21 (Day 15)

Biathlon

12.5 kilometer mass start

8:15 a.m.: Women’s final (USA Network)🏅

Bobsled

Four-man

• 4 a.m.: Heats 1, 2 (airs on USA Network at 11 a.m.)

Two-woman

• 1 p.m.: Heats 3, 4 (NBC) 🏅

Cross-Country Skiing

50 kilometer mass start

5 a.m.: Men’s final (USA Network coverage begins at 6:10 a.m.; airs on NBC at 11 a.m.)🏅

Curling

Women’s bronze-medal game

• 8:05 a.m.: Bronze-medal game (airs on USA Network at 10:20 a.m.)🏅

Men’s

• 1:05 p.m.: Gold-medal game (CNBC)🏅

Figure Skating

• 2 p.m.: Exhibition gala (NBC coverage begins at 2:55 p.m.)

Freestyle Skiing

Aerials

• 4:45 a.m.: Mixed team final (USA Network)🏅

Ski cross

• 5:55 a.m.: Men’s final (airs on USA Network at 11:45 a.m.) 🏅

Halfpipe

• 1:30 p.m.: Women’s final (NBC)🏅

Hockey

Men’s

• 2:40 p.m.: Bronze-medal game (USA Network)🏅

Ski Mountaineering

Relay

• 7:30 a.m.: Mixed final (USA Network)🏅

Speed Skating

Mass start

9 a.m.: Men’s and women’s finals (USA Network; airs at 10 a.m. on NBC)🏅