While the Olympics encapsulate athletes’ resilience, capabilities, and integrity, these attributes are often intertwined with elements of controversy.
The 2026 Winter Olympics have been anything but uneventful, filled with two and a half weeks of pure controversy. From admitted cheating scandals to curling drama that felt like it came right out of The Real Housewives, the Olympics came to entertain… oh, and to play some sports too!
Norwegian athlete admits to cheating on his girlfriend post-victory
After earning the bronze medal in the men’s 20 km biathlon, Norwegian athlete Sturla Holm Lægreid followed with a spontaneous confession.
During the post-game interview, Lægreid admitted to cheating on his girlfriend. He told Norwegian Broadcasting Corp., “I told her a week ago. And it’s been the worst week of my life… I had a gold medal in life, and there’s probably a lot of people out there who look at me differently now.”
In an attempt to supposedly make a public apology to his ex, Lægreid declared he had “nothing to lose.”
In addition to leaving many confused, this interview sparked curiosity throughout social media. This may not have been Norway’s first biathlon medal, but it was definitely the first time an athlete confessed to cheating after winning one.
The scandals of the French figure skaters
While controversy heightened over American duo Madison Chock and Evan Bates, the three-time reigning world champions, missing out on gold, that was just the beginning of the figure skating drama. Many fans believed the veteran’s performance deserved gold instantly. Nonetheless, the judges awarded them silver, only 1.43 points behind the winning pair.
With the gold medal going to the French duo, Laurence Fournier Beaudry and Guillaume Cizeron, attention was initially focused on the bobbles and mishaps within their routine that still got them gold. However, their win was soon overshadowed by allegations surrounding their former partners. It began when Fournier Beaudry’s boyfriend and former skating partner, Nikolaj Sørensen, received sexual assault allegations and was suspended in 2024. After denying the accusations, the suspension was overturned a year later, and Fournier Beaudry continues to defend him. Further, Fournier Beaudry’s current partner, Cizeron, has been accused of inappropriate behavior by Gabriella Papadakis, another French ice skater. Although Cizeron and Papadakis won gold together in Beijing in 2022, she later came out with a memoir describing his toxic and controlling demeanor.
As the dispute has centered on Milano Cortina, the uneasy and unusual dynamic of the French partnership has become heightened. When asked about the conflict, the couple deflected, answering that they just wanted to focus on skating.
Male ski jumpers accused of using “crotch filler”
In early 2026, it was rumoured that Olympic Ski jumpers were injecting hyaluronic acid into their crotches to receive a larger ski suit. Allegedly, a large suit would improve their aerodynamics.
The report attracted worldwide attention for the Olympics, in which officials said they were ready to investigate if the matter was doping-related. The claim was eventually called a “wild rumor.” Nonetheless, the rumor remained a sensitive topic for the ski jumping industry following a cheating scandal that erupted last year; Norwegian team leaders were caught on camera manipulating ski suits at the World Championship in Norway. As a result, an 18-month suspension was given to the coaches involved with tampering with the suits before the big event. Further, ski jumpers Marius Lindvik and Johann André Forfang were given a three-month suspension, still allowing them to compete in this season’s event.
Taking precautions for the future, the International Ski Federation has adopted more guidelines, including uniform checks before and after each athlete’s jump, and microchips have been placed in suits to prevent further manipulation.
Canada’s curling scandal
Toward the end of the Canada curling match against Sweden, cruel words were exchanged by Canadian curler Marc Kennedy and Oskar Eriksson from Sweden. As Canada won a close match 8-6, Kennedy grew continuously more frustrated as the Swedish team continually accused him of cheating. That is, he was charged with touching the stone beyond the “hog line.”
Within the rules and regulations of curling, you must release heavy granite rocks down the ice before the “hog line,” or else you are disqualified. According to the Swedish team, Kennedy continuously double-touched the stone after the line. The officials declared they did not see the violations and thus did not call anything.
“I’ve curled my whole life, never once with the intention of getting an advantage through cheating,” Kennedy said in an NPR interview.
Despite a video circulating that shows Kennedy’s alleged cheating, World Curling has affirmed that it will not use video replays to review calls made during games. They only issued a verbal warning to the Canadians about Kennedy’s language used during the game.
As a result, the curling officials have been surveilling players’ throws throughout the most recent games. A man and a woman from their respective matches were both disqualified for the double-touch violation.
From bizarre doping rumors to confessions that had nothing to do with the sport itself, the 2026 Winter Olympics proved that drama occurred both on and off the ice and snow. While the Games are meant to showcase athletes’ resilience and skills, Milano Cortina has become a reminder that even the most elite athletes exist under scrutiny. That is, personal lives, past controversies, and the pressures of the game itself can sometimes overshadow years of training. Milano Cortina has highlighted that the spotlight can almost be as ruthless as the competition.