Markus Laurisen (left, here against HC Bozen) is at the Olympics.

A man from Puster Valley travels to Milan for the Olympics

The ICE Hockey League will take a two-week break in February in preparation for the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina. A defenseman from HC Pustertal has now been nominated for his country's Olympic squad.

07 January 2026

From: dl

Denmark announced its Olympic roster on Wednesday, which includes the name of Markus Lauridsen. The 34-year-old moved from the Frankfurt Lions of the DEL to Bruneck this summer. For the Black and Yellows, Lauridsen tallied three goals and twelve assists in 34 games this season.

With the Scandinavians, he recently celebrated one of the greatest successes of his career: at the 2025 World Cup on home soil in May, he and his teammates sensationally stormed into the semi-finals, thereby earning themselves legendary status in their homeland. The versatile defender has a total of around 250 international appearances for Denmark. With the Danes, Lauridsen will face Germany, the USA, and Latvia in the group stage of the Olympic tournament in Milan.