Team USA fifth in relay at 2026 Winter Games

CORTINA d’AMPEZZO, Italy—The luge competition at the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026 concluded today with the team relay event. United States finished fifth. 

2026 Olympic bronze medalist Ashley Farquharson was the first to leave the start handles and had the third quickest start among the women singles discipline. Farquharson (Park City, Utah) hit the paddle for Marcus Mueller (Brookfield, Wisc.) and Ansel Haugsjaa (Framingham, Mass.) who had the second fastest men’s doubles time of the race. Jonny Gustafson (Massena, N.Y.) was next down the track followed by Chevonne Forgan (Chelmsford, Mass.) and Sophia Kirkby (Lake Placid, N.Y.). Team USA finished the race in fifth with a time of three minutes 42.776 seconds. 

Team Germany won the gold medal with a track record time of 3:41.672. Taking the silver medal was Team Austria in 3:42.214, and Team Italy won bronze in 3:42.521. 

Ashley Farquharson: "This was a truly unforgettable experience. I'm very proud of us."

Jonny Gustafson: “It’s so much fun. We kind of all do our own thing for the warm up, but getting together you can feel the vibe of everyone just getting ready and getting excited. And it's kind of intoxicating just that excitement and the readiness almost of going out there. And there's some nerves around for sure, but I think the underlying levels of excitement really overpower everything. It's incredible."

Marcus Mueller: “The second run was a rough run yesterday, so we just wanted to put it on the track. And we did. So I was super happy with it."

Ansel Haugsjaa: "I think just the last 24 hours has been a whirlwind of emotions and everything, so it was a lot coming in today, but definitely super nervous for this run. It's great racing with the team, so I was super happy we could put it together. I think we just wanted to come back and really end on a good note to show what we can do."

Chevonne Forgan: “It was a lot of fun. I feel so lucky to be here. I'm so thankful for my family, my friends, and, of course, my amazing team. I'm so proud of us to be here. And I hope that we'll see the women's doubles field grow and grow in the coming years. I'm so proud of our team. I'm so happy we have such an amazing team. Racing with them is such a treat."

Sophia Kirkby:”I’m really happy that we are going to be a part of this history as women's doubles make its debut and being added to the rest of the team. I'm just grateful to be racing with everyone that's here with me.”

Following the 2026 Winter Games, USA Luge will be sending Summer Britcher to the final two races of the World Cup season. Britcher (Glen Rock, Pa.) is currently in fifth place with 394 overall World Cup points and a chance of earning a top three finish in the overall standings. All other athletes will be returning to the U.S. following closing ceremonies at the Winter Games. 

World Cup action returns February 28-March 1, 2026, in St. Mortiz, Switzerland, with the season finale in Altenberg, Germany March 7-8, 2026. All World Cup races can be seen live on the FIL YouTube page, Max and Discovery+. Weekly highlight shows are also available on the NBC Sports YouTube channel. Replays of all luge events from Cortina can be viewed at NBC Olympics.