After one of the most unexpected upsets in the 2026 Olympics, figure skating will return to the Milan Cortina ice with its next event: pairs.
The pairs competition will begin with its short program Sunday, bringing Chicago-area skating sensation Danny O’Shea and his partner Ellie Kam back to the ice.
But will the ongoing ice concerns that some believe have led to a rise in falls plague even more skaters?
Here’s what to know:
What time does pairs figure skating start?
Sunday’s short program begins at 12:45 p.m. CT. The medal free skate event will begin at 1 p.m. CT Monday.
Where to watch the figure skating pairs short program?
The event will air live on USA at the start, with the second half airing on NBC starting at 2 p.m. CT.
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Falls in both figure skating and speedskating, which compete in the same arena, have led some athletes to question or voice concerns about ice conditions some say could be leading to a rise in falls and mishaps.
The falls were noticeable during the men’s figure skating free skate on Friday, which resulted in one of the biggest upsets of the Games so far. That’s when 21-year-old skating sensation Ilia Malinin, who is often flawless in his performance, fell not once but twice and landed off the podium entirely.
Even he suggested the ice might have posed an issue following his devastating performance that shocked the world.
“Of course, in the moment, it definitely felt like not only nerves,” Malinin said, the New York Times reported. “But maybe the ice was also not the best condition for what I would like to have. And that’s something I cannot complain about because we’re all put in that situation where we have to skate no matter what happens. So that’s not really an excuse I can give.”
But the issues weren’t isolated to figure skating.
On Tuesday, a crash in the mixed team relay knocked Team USA skaters out of medal contention, and it occurred amid what skaters called “soft and slushy” ice conditions.
“Yeah, this ice isn’t the best for short track right now umm, I think it’s … like figure skating ice,” speed skater Corinne Stoddard said.
“Everyone’s on the same ice, so it’s something we’ll have to adapt to, but it’s a challenge for sure,” speed skater Julia Letai added.
Who to watch
Gurnee native and Chicago-area skating star O’Shea won over hearts during the team event earlier in the Games when he and Kam skated one of the best performances of their skating careers to help Team USA to gold.
The U.S. has never had a pairs Olympic champion. In fact, it hasn’t had a medalist of any flavor since Jill Watson and Peter Oppegard earned the bronze medal at the 1988 Calgary Games.
Kam and O’Shea are not considered favorites in the individual pairs event, but figure skating’s final events so far have already proven anything is possible.
Kam and O’Shea’s journey to the Olympics has inspired many.
2026 Milan Cortina Olympics Feb 8Suburban skater Danny O'Shea shares heartfelt message to his home after powerful skate
2026 Milan Cortina Olympics Feb 13Ilia Malinin did something incredible after his devastating skate — and you might have missed it
Shortly after O’Shea underwent surgery to repair a broken foot, Kam sustained a severe concussion last summer when she hit her head on the ice during a fall. She was sidelined for about a month, putting preparations for the most important season of their lives — and perhaps O’Shea’s last chance at the Winter Games — in a state of flux.
So when they stepped on the ice for the team event last weekend, and ultimately helped the Americans defend their gold medal, the beaming smiles both wore on their faces were rooted in a whole lot of pain.
“I don’t really have the words because it’s supposed to be just another competition,” Kam said, “but it’s so much more than that.”
“It means everything,” O’Shea said. “It’s so amazing. It’s those moments that you’ve dreamed of since you were a little kid.”
O’Shea and Kim, who will compete in the individual event starting Sunday night, are perhaps an unlikely pairing.
O’Shea, who turned 35 earlier in the Olympics, is at a point in his life at which most skaters have retired. He played football, soccer and basketball while growing up, which is not exactly common for figure skaters, and even ran track and practiced karate.
It was always figure skating that captured his imagination, though. O’Shea remembers watching the Olympics when he was not yet 10 years old, and the dream of skating under those lights and amid that pressure took root and never let go.
“I wrote out all the years the Olympics would be. ‘Oh, it happens every four years, and in 2010, I’ll be 18 or whatever. That’s the one I’m going to go to,’” O’Shea told The Associated Press. “That did not happen. But I am if nothing else pretty stubborn and determined — two sides of the same coin. I’m determined and, you know, I believed in myself.”
He kept believing even when it didn’t happen for the Sochi Games in 2014, or the Pyeongchang Games in 2018, which might have been the most difficult to swallow. O’Shea and his then-partner Tarah Kayne were the first alternates, and because the U.S. only qualified one spot, they spent the month in South Korea just in case something happened to the American team.
Alexa Knierim and her husband, Chris Knierim, wound up competing as planned. O’Shea and Kayne did not.
“To be so close and not make it, it was devastating, right?” O’Shea said. “They don’t usually send alternates, but with only one pair, they wanted me to stay in Asia after Four Continents and be close by. It was one of the coolest, hardest moments of my life.”
Kayne eventually left the sport amid allegations of misconduct related to their former coach, Dalilah Sappenfield, who subsequently was banned by the United States Center for SafeSport for physical and emotional abuse, among other charges.
O’Shea spent a season skating with Chelsea Liu before teaming up with Kam for the 2022-23 season.
The 21-year-old Kam, who was born at Yakota Air Base in Japan, and O’Shea quickly became the top U.S. pairs team. They have never been off the podium in four trips to nationals, winning the title in 2024 and the silver medal last month in St. Louis.
The duo were fifth in the short program, edging reigning Olympic champions Sui Wenjing and Han Cong and helping the U.S. build a lead going into the free skate. There, they finished fourth ahead of Canada’s Lia Pereira and Trennt Michaud, giving them an extra point that ended up being the margin of victory for the Americans against silver medalist Japan.
“It’s what you worked your entire life for, both of us, since we were 4 years old,” O’Shea said. “You put every ounce of spare time — every time you could have gone and hang out with friends or had, I don’t know, normal moments, right? Instead, you’re back putting in the time on the ice. The sacrifices from our family but also from us, it just all goes into making this happen.”
Only one other U.S. pairs couple will skate in the pairs competition: Emily Chan and Spencer Akira Howe.
Order of skaters
Only skaters with the top 16 scores will advance to the final free skate.
Group 1AKOPOVA Karina / RAKHMANIN Nikita ARMSUI Wenjing / HAN Cong CHNGOLUBEVA Anastasiia / GIOTOPOULOS MOORE Hektor AUS
Group 2KOVALEV Camille / KOVALEV Pavel FRACHAN Emily / HOWE Spencer Akira USADANILOVA Daria / TSIBA Michel NEDNAGAOKA Yuna / MORIGUCHI Sumitada JPN
Group 3CHTCHETININA Ioulia / WOZNIAK Michal POLPEREIRA Lia / MICHAUD Trennt CANHOCKE Annika / KUNKEL Robert GERVAIPAN-LAW Anastasia / DIGBY Luke GBR
Group 4PAVLOVA Maria / SVIATCHENKO Alexei HUNGHILARDI Rebecca / AMBROSINI Filippo ITAKAM Ellie / O’SHEA Danny USASTELLATO-DUDEK Deanna / DESCHAMPS Maxime CAN
Group 5METELKINA Anastasiia / BERULAVA Luka GEOCONTI Sara / MACII Niccolo ITAMIURA Riku / KIHARA Ryuichi JPNHASE Minerva Fabienne / VOLODIN Nikita GER
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