There are moments in sports that transcend the stopwatch and the scoreboard, moments that become the stuff of legend. On February 16, 2026, at the Eugenio Monti Olympic Sliding Center in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy, Elana Meyers Taylor created just such a moment. In a dramatic finale to the women’s monobob at the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics, the 41-year-old American bobsledder finally claimed the elusive Olympic gold that had danced just out of reach over the course of five Olympic Games.
Meyers Taylor’s journey to the top of the podium is a story of persistence, resilience, and a little bit of magic on the ice. Entering her fifth Olympics, she was already a five-time medalist—three silvers and two bronzes—making her one of the most decorated athletes in the history of U.S. Winter sports. But gold? That had always been just a hair’s breadth away. Until now.
Trailing Germany’s Laura Nolte through the first three heats, Meyers Taylor needed perfection in her final run. And perfection is what she delivered. With a blistering fourth run clocked at 59.51 seconds, she posted a combined time of 3:57.93. As she waited in the leader’s box, all eyes were on Nolte, the reigning two-woman bobsleigh Olympic champion and the favorite coming into the final. But in a twist that left fans gasping, Nolte faltered on the upper section of the track, her sled skidding and her advantage melting away. When Nolte crossed the finish line, the timer flashed red—she was 0.04 seconds behind.
“It actually happened. It’s going to take a while for this to sink in,” Meyers Taylor told reporters, her voice trembling with emotion. “I still can’t believe it. I can’t even put into words what this means, I’m just so excited.”
This gold medal was more than just a personal victory. Meyers Taylor became the oldest Olympic champion in women’s bobsleigh history and the oldest bobsleigh medalist at any Games since 1956. Her sixth Olympic medal ties her with speedskater Bonnie Blair for the most career Winter Olympic medals by an American woman and places her second all-time among U.S. Winter Olympians, behind only Apolo Anton Ohno. She also remains the most decorated Black athlete in Winter Olympic history, a distinction she first achieved at the Beijing Games.
On the podium beside her stood two women who know a thing or two about perseverance: Germany’s Laura Nolte, who took silver in 3:57.97, and American Kaillie Humphries Armbruster, the defending monobob champion, who finished with bronze in 3:58.05. For Nolte, the silver was bittersweet. “After four runs, to finish in silver place with four 100ths [away from gold] is very sad, because I was leading for three runs and I was sure I could make it in the last run,” Nolte admitted. “I made one mistake at the top that took all my time away, my speed away, and I knew it would be hard to remain in the lead.”
For Humphries, the bronze was a triumph of a different kind. Now a five-time Olympic medalist and four-time World Champion, she reflected on the journey back to elite form after giving birth to her first child in 2024. “I am very happy and proud of this result,” Humphries said. “It took a lot. I gave birth a year and a half ago, so I was not fully expecting this. I’m really proud to be on the podium with these women, to have the opportunity to continue to do the sport I love, and to challenge myself physically and mentally.”
The monobob event itself is a relatively new addition to the Olympic program, making its debut in 2022—a development for which Meyers Taylor herself lobbied. Her advocacy for women in sliding sports has been matched only by her trailblazing performances. She competed as a pilot in mixed-gender four-person bobsled events, becoming the first woman to win an international medal in a men’s event. Her leadership extends off the ice as well, having recruited several athletes into the Team USA sliding pipeline.
But perhaps no part of Meyers Taylor’s story is more inspiring than her role as a mother and advocate. Competing as a mother of two sons—both born deaf, one with Down syndrome—she has used her platform to champion children with disabilities and families navigating similar challenges. “They've given me a whole new reason to keep pushing,” Meyers Taylor shared in an Olympics.com interview. Her visibility and advocacy have made her a beacon for parents and athletes alike, proving that Olympic dreams don’t end with motherhood or adversity.
Other notable performances in Cortina included Germany’s Lisa Buckwitz, who finished fourth, and European Champion Melanie Hasler of Switzerland, who placed fifth. Canadian Melissa Lotholz rounded out the top six. Denmark’s Maja Voigt, just 18 years old and the youngest in the field, delivered a remarkable ninth-place finish out of 25 starters, a promising sign for the future of the sport. Local Italian favorites Simona De Silvestro and Giada Andreutti finished 23rd and 24th, respectively, earning loud cheers from the home crowd.
The U.S. contingent also featured Kaysha Love, who finished seventh in her first Olympics as a pilot after an up-and-down series of runs. Love, who was third-fastest after Run 1 but lost ground in Runs 2 and 4, nonetheless proved she’s a name to watch in future competitions.
The historic results in monobob have energized Team USA’s medal tally at these Games. With the two-woman bobsled event scheduled to begin on February 20, Meyers Taylor, Humphries, and Love are all set to compete again—each with a fresh shot at Olympic glory. The anticipation is palpable. Can Meyers Taylor add to her already glittering legacy? Will Humphries climb even higher on the all-time list? The sliding center in Cortina d’Ampezzo is sure to provide more drama before the Games are through.
For now, though, the spotlight belongs to Elana Meyers Taylor. Her gold medal is a testament to years of determination, the support of family and friends, and the hope she’s inspired in countless others. “I just focused on what I needed to do, the points I needed to hit,” she said, reflecting on her golden run. “I was super grateful to be able to put these pieces together and finally have a run that I could walk away very proud of.”
With her place in history now secure, Meyers Taylor stands as proof that greatness can arrive at any age, and that the most thrilling stories in sports are often those written by athletes who simply refuse to give up. As the Olympic flame continues to burn in Cortina, fans and fellow athletes alike are left to marvel—what more can this remarkable champion achieve?