Team USA’s Brittany Bowe and Hilary Knight Announce Engagement at Milan Cortina Olympics
Speed skater Brittany Bowe and U.S. women’s hockey captain Hilary Knight shared the news with the world on Tuesday, Feb. 17, in a joint Instagram post that quickly captured the hearts of fans and fellow athletes. Knight’s words accompanying the announcement were simple: “Olympics brought us together. This one made us forever.”
The engagement between two of Team USA’s biggest stars at the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics marks one of the most memorable off-ice moments of these Games.
A Love Story That Started in Beijing
The couple’s relationship traces back to the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, where they first met.
“We really got to know each other in Beijing and have really been inseparable ever since,” Bowe told Olympics.com earlier this month. She added that she knew “very quickly” that this woman would be in her life for a long time.
For Bowe, the contrast between Knight’s fierce public persona and her private self drew her in. Knight has long carried the “Captain America” moniker, a nickname befitting one of the most dominant players in U.S. women’s hockey history. But behind that, Bowe found someone different.
“Knowing her as a hockey player, it’s like this big, strong, powerful female,” Bowe explained. “But then, when we got to know each other, she was soft, genuine, kind, almost shy. That really sparked my interest.”
Hilary Knight: Chasing History On the Ice
Knight, 36, is competing in her fifth Winter Olympics with the U.S. women’s hockey team — a career span stretching from Vancouver 2010 to Italy in 2026.
She is actively rewriting the record books. Earlier in Milan Cortina, she tied the U.S. Olympic record for most goals and points in women’s hockey. She is now chasing a record-tying fifth Olympic hockey medal and is poised to become the first U.S. ice hockey player to win five Olympic medals. She has been present for at least four podiums across her career.
Knight’s pursuit of a second gold medal reaches its climax in Thursday’s gold medal game against rival Canada, a matchup that could further cement her place in the sport’s history.
Brittany Bowe: A Decorated Career’s Final Chapter
Bowe, 37, is making her fourth Olympic appearance in Milan Cortina. The speed skater is a two-time bronze medalist, having won a bronze medal each of the last two Olympics. She nearly added another medal to her collection in the women’s 1000m at this year’s Games.
Her last ever Olympic event will be the 1500m on Friday.
What Lies Ahead
The newly engaged couple still has significant competition ahead before celebrations can fully begin.
For Knight, a gold medal on Thursday would represent the crowning achievement of a five-Olympics career — and a fitting way to mark a week that has already brought life-changing news away from the rink. For Bowe, Friday’s 1500m offers one last chance to add to her Olympic medal collection before skating into retirement.
Whatever happens on the ice in the days ahead, the 2026 Milan Cortina Olympics will hold a permanent place in the story of these two athletes — not just for what they accomplished in competition, but for the commitment they made to each other while the world watched.
Production of this article included the use of AI. It was reviewed and edited by a team of content specialists.
