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Olympics and Paralympics
Nicole Ki

Hockey dominates, curling splits matches as Minnesotans compete in first events of Winter Paralympics

A snowboarder in red pumps his fist.
Mike Schultz, of the United States, reacts after qualifying in a men's snowboard cross SB-LL1 quarterfinal at the 2026 Winter Paralympics, in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, Sunday.
Emilio Morenatti | AP

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Several Minnesota athletes have already made their 2026 Winter Paralympics debut in Milano Cortina during the first few days since the Friday start of the games.

A total of 11 Minnesotans are participating in the Paralympics this week — the most Paralympians out of any state in the country. The athletes are competing in various sports including para alpine skiing, ice hockey and wheelchair curling.

A Paralympics Alpine skier carves down a mountain.
Meg Gustafson, of the United States, skis during the alpine skiing the women's downhill VI competition at the 2026 Winter Paralympics, in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, Saturday.
Emilio Morenatti | AP

Here’s a roundup of the events they’ve played so far and their upcoming games:

  • Sydney Peterson of Lake Elmo, a para biathlon and para cross-country skier, placed fourth in the women’s sprint standing para biathlon on Saturday. Para-cross country skiing events begin on Tuesday. Peterson has four more events.

  • Meg and Spenser Gustafson of Edina competed in women's downhill vision impaired para alpine skiing on Saturday and finished sixth. The sibling duo includes Meg as the para alpine skier and Spenser as the skiing guide. The next event they’re competing in is the women’s para alpine skiing super-G on Monday morning.

  • Liam Cunningham of River Falls, Wis., and Landon Uthke of Albert Lea played their first game with the U.S. men’s para ice hockey team on Saturday. The team beat Italy 14-1. Their next game is at 11:05 a.m. Monday against Germany.

  • Oyuna Uranchimeg of Burnsville played an opening match against China for the U.S. wheelchair mixed curling team on Saturday. The U.S. bested Italy 9-1 on Sunday after dropping its first match 12-7 to China on Saturday.

  • Blake Eaton of Duluth came in 20th place on Saturday in the men’s downhill sitting para alpine skiing race. He’s competing in two more events: men’s combined sitting alpine and men’s sitting super-G sitting.

  • Mike Schultz of St. Cloud ranked sixth in men’s para snowboarding on Sunday. He has one more para snowboarding event this week.

  • Max Nelson of Grant and Gus Schatzlein of Savage have not competed in their cross country skiing events yet. Nelson is competing in several in the visually impaired division, with Schatzlein as his guide. His first event is coming up on Tuesday in the men’s sprint classic.

  • Aaron Pike of Park Rapids has not yet competed in his para cross-country skiing events. The first events for that sport are scheduled for Tuesday.