Many aspects of these Games have been more enjoyable for Giorgia Birkeland than her Olympic debut in 2022.
United States’ Giorgia Birkeland competes in the women’s 1500m speed skating time trials at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Rho, Italy, Wednesday, Feb. 4, 2026. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
“Last time was not even a comparison,” the speedskater from White Bear Lake said.
For one, it was still in a COVID-era of competition, where competitors were bunkered down and sporting masks in Beijing.
“There was like no congregating, no pin exchanges, really,” she said. “It was very not social at all.”
This time around, Birkeland is getting the full experience. She has explored the village and has the food schedule down.
“It’s way more fun,” the 23-year-old said. “It’s very cool.”
Everything is also more comfortable, in part because she knows she belongs.
Four years ago, Birkeland’s Olympic berth was a bit of a surprise. And while she earned it via her performance leading up to the Games, she didn’t feel like she was meant to be there — even as she finished 12th in the mass start at Beijing.
“Before, racing at the Olympics felt more like a threat,” Birkeland said. “It didn’t feel like an opportunity. I had imposter syndrome to the max. It was my first international competition, and I was really the newbie. … I didn’t necessarily feel super prepared. It was like a surprise. You didn’t really know what to expect.”
The circumstances have flipped in Italy where, coincidentally, Birkeland was born. The Mahtomedi High School alum is part of the U.S. team pursuit, which races in the semifinals at 7:52 a.m. Tuesday and then, if all goes well, in the finals shortly thereafter.
She goes into the races confident, ready and excited.
“I’ve been preparing for this moment this entire year, so it feels way sweeter,” Birkeland said. “Rather than it being like, ‘Oh, I have to do this thing,’ it’s like, ‘Oh my god, this is what I’ve been working all year towards, and I get to do it.’”
She earned this, and she’s going to savor it. Birkeland plans to retire at season’s end, meaning this will be her final Olympics, and it almost never came to be after – quite literally – a false step.
It was the fall of 2024, Birkeland believes it was September, and the athlete rolled her foot while walking and broke a bone in her foot.
She couldn’t walk, nor bear weight. The injury sidelined Birkeland for months. She missed nearly the entire World Cup campaign that winter.
“My whole season was gone,” she said.
Was her career? Birkeland trains in Utah, but there wasn’t a lot of support available during her recovery. She wasn’t on the national team, which was tied up in World Cup competitions at the time. Her coach had recently been let go.
Birkeland credits her sister, her teammates and former Olympic speedskating gold medalist Derek Parra for helping her push a rehab grind that largely involved daily pool work.
Not exactly the most enjoyable experience.
“It made me bunker down and be like, ‘OK, is this something I really want?’” Birkeland said.
Which was an immediate, “Yes,” correct?
“No,” Birkeland said. “I feel like I was thinking about quitting like the entire time.”
Even when she was able to return to the ice, coming back from “Ground Zero” presents its own challenges. But she was able to return for the tail end of the World Cup season and recorded a time that qualified for “A” funding, which provided motivation and validation.
By the summer, Birkeland decided she was going to compete for one more season and take one more hack at the Olympic dream.
Brittany Bowe of the U.S., front, is followed by teammates Mia Manganello, center, and Giorgia Birkeland, right, as they compete in the women’s team pursuit quarterfinals speedskating race at the 2026 Winter Olympics, in Milan, Italy, Saturday, Feb. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
“I’m like, ‘OK, I only have one year left after this, I might as well make it count,’ ” she thought.
She’d picked up good habits from her rehab process. The sunset of a career provides necessary urgency. Everything Birkeland did was intentional.
The payoff was this trip to Italy, this experience, Tuesday’s pursuits that, unlike in 2022, she’s thoroughly excited to skate.
“I honestly can’t wait to race. I want to prove it to the world, I want everyone to watch, because this is our time to shine,” Birkeland said. “It feels a lot different than four years ago.”
Largely thanks to the lessons she has learned along the way.
“I feel like, honestly, (I’ve learned to) just make the most out of it. Understanding that life is a journey,” Birkeland said. “Even the Olympics, it’s like a destination with the medal. But really, I think the best gold medal was the journey I was able to go through, the people I was able to meet and the things I was able to learn about myself.”
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