Maybritt Vigl is allowed to go to the Olympic Games.

Olympic dream comes true for two South Tyrolean ice sports athletes

The 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan-Cortina are drawing ever closer. On Tuesday, the Italian Ice Sports Federation (FISG) announced all the athletes nominated for the home Winter Games. Among them were two individual figure skaters from South Tyrol.

20 January 2026

From: cst

In just over two weeks, the Winter Olympics will begin in Italy. For two South Tyrolean ice sports athletes, the dream of competing on home soil is about to come true. This was announced on Tuesday by the Italian Ice Sports Federation (FISI), which also published the nominees for the ice hockey team.

The nomination is unlikely to come as a big surprise to Daniel Grassl. The Merano native already competed in Beijing four years ago, finishing in 7th place. Grassl, who won the silver medal at the 2022 European Championships in Tallinn, has also attracted attention in the past for his collaboration with Russian figure skating coach Eteri Tutberidze. Tutberidze was implicated in the doping case involving the then-underage Kamila Valieva.

Speed ​​skater Vigl also participated

For Maybritt Vigl, the Olympic nomination is likely to be a somewhat bigger surprise. The skater from Ritten only made her World Cup debut in speed skating this year. Most recently, the 21-year-old participated in the European Championships in Poland, finishing 10th in the 500 meters. Vigl's rise – from her World Cup debut to the home Olympics within just a few weeks – is certainly remarkable.