Free from ‘sports prison,’ Winter athletes get chance to enjoy Olympics without a COVID lockdown

Athletes Eager for Return to “Normal” Olympics After Beijing Bubble

Canadian snowboarder Mark McMorris has a familiar set of goals for the upcoming Milan Cortina Olympics: stick his landings, execute his hardest tricks, and come home with a medal. But this time, there’s something else on his list that feels especially meaningful — “To enjoy it with my friends.”

It’s a sentiment echoed by winter athletes worldwide as they prepare for the 2026 Games, which promise a stark contrast to the last Winter Olympics in Beijing. Four years ago, the COVID-19 pandemic transformed what should have been a celebration of sport into what McMorris famously described as “sports prison.”

“What I can tell you with absolute certainty is that I am really excited to compete in this Games without COVID tests every 24 hours and just the pandemic breathing down our necks,” said American alpine skiing star Mikaela Shiffrin, who went medalless in Beijing. “It’s a very, very different situation to go into these Games and that’s a wonderful thing.”

The Beijing Olympics forced athletes into sterile bubbles with daily COVID testing, where each nasal swab carried the threat of a positive result that could end years of Olympic dreams. Competitors ate behind plastic shields, trained and competed without family support, and lived under the constant stress of potential quarantine.

For first-time Olympians like short track speedskater Andrew Heo, Beijing was their only reference point. “The Beijing Olympics was cool in itself, because I didn’t have any prior experience,” Heo said. “But so many people told me: This is like nothing compared to what an actual Olympics is like.”

The contrast in 2026 will be dramatic. Instead of the clinical atmosphere of Beijing, athletes will compete in Milan and picturesque Alpine resort towns like Livigno. They’ll enjoy local cuisine, fine Italian wine, and most importantly, the presence of their support networks.

“Hopefully I can use their support to fuel myself. It will be good to enjoy the Olympics as a crew this time,” said McMorris, a three-time Olympic bronze medalist who will be 32 when he competes in Italy.

The Paris Summer Games in 2024 already demonstrated what a return to normalcy could mean for the Olympic movement. After the muted, largely spectator-free Tokyo and Beijing Games threatened to diminish the Olympic brand, Paris revitalized it with full venues and enthusiastic crowds. Now, winter athletes eagerly anticipate their turn.

The dire atmosphere of Beijing was perhaps best illustrated by Belgian skeleton racer Kim Meylemans, whose tearful social media plea for release from quarantine went viral after a positive test. Even those who avoided quarantine described an unwelcoming arrival experience.

“Instead of having, like, a cheering welcome committee, we’re funneled in to get a cotton swab stuck up our nose and down our throat for a COVID test,” recalled U.S. speedskater Brittany Bowe, a two-time bronze medalist. “Every single morning it’s like, you’re in line to go get your COVID test and just hoping and praying like you are not one that’s going to have a positive test.”

For the U.S. Paralympic sled hockey team, which is aiming for a third consecutive gold medal, the return to normalcy brings new challenges. Several team members have only experienced the Beijing bubble, making family management a new consideration.

“We’ll definitely chat about managing how much time you can spend with your family,” said veteran forward Declan Farmer. “Don’t want to give any of them the impression that you can just hang out with them all the time, in all your free time, because you need that recharge personal time, as well. Just be prepared for that, a little bit of added pressure of having them in attendance.”

For most athletes, though, these are welcome challenges. Caroline Harvey, whose only Olympic experience came with the U.S. women’s hockey team’s silver medal in Beijing, relishes the possibility of celebrating a potential victory with a cheering crowd rather than in eerie silence.

“Really looking forward to having family there, friends, having some of that comfort and familiarity within such a stressful environment,” Harvey said.

As the Milan Cortina Games approach, athletes are embracing what they missed in Beijing: the cultural experience, the camaraderie, and the shared celebration that makes the Olympics special. After years of competition in masks and bubbles, they’re ready for the Olympics to feel like the Olympics again.