Faster, higher, stronger…. juicier?
As competition heats up on the ice and snow, changes in how the Games are presented have granted fans a new deeper look at the athletes themselves.
We’re kicking off the week with our own version of Page Six.
The Olympics were historically one of our most staid sporting events, full of tradition, protocols and uplifting national storylines.
Then came social media. Instagram, TikTok and X in particular have opened up new ways to follow the games—and learn what life is really like as an Olympian. Here are a few of the non-traditional stories that broke through during the first week-plus of competition.
Welcome to the Gossip Olympics!
Curling’s ‘double-touching’ debate 🥌
A shouting match broke out during Canada and Sweden’s curling competition on Saturday, following allegations—backed up by video—that Canadian Marc Kennedy was inappropriately using a finger to guide his rocks after releasing them. An F-bomb was picked up (curlers, unlike any other athletes, wear mics throughout competition).
Team Canada pushed back by saying Sweden was illegally recording video in the hopes of catching Kennedy. In later matches, officials were added iceside to monitor for similar infractions, finding multiple cases, before being pulled from duty.
The typically collegial curling community still hasn’t completely recovered. But the memes have been 🔥
The Crazy Biathlete Medalists (yes, multiple) 🎿🔫
After winning bronze in the 20K men’s biathlon race, Sturla Holm Laegreid took the opportunity of a post-event interview with the Norwegian Broadcasting Corp. to open up about his (very recent!) infidelity. The “famously messy Norwegian biathlete” said that “the love of my life,” who he met six months ago, was not in the stands in Italy because he’d cheated on her three months ago.
Laegreid then apologized for potentially stealing the spotlight from countrymen and gold-medal winner Johan-Olav Botn. One can only imagine the vibes at Norway’s dinner table that night. (Shout out to Rodger Sherman, who broke down the story in his excellent—and gossip laden—daily Olympics newsletter, for bringing it to the world.)
Elsewhere, French biathlete Julia Simon was more tightlipped after winning gold in the women’s 15K competition, literally so, as she held a finger over her mouth while crossing the finish line. Post-race, she refused to answer questions about the times (yes, multiple) she was found to have used team members’ credit cards for thousands in spending. One of the victims, Justine Braisaz-Bouchet, finished 80th in the same race.
The Anti-Couple Couple 💔
If you think those team dynamics are weird, consider Italian ice dancers Sara Conti and Niccolo Macii, who were a couple both on and off the ice as they rose to the highest levels of the sport. Then in 2023, days before their first World Championships, Conti broke things off.
But they stayed together professionally, in the most intimate, handsy and co-dependent sport in the winter Olympics. Imagine doing this daily with your ex.
And it’s worked! They won a bronze medal last week in the team competition, then finished sixth in the pairs event. “We know each other as dating, not dating, happy and unhappy,” Macii said before the Games. “So we basically know each other 360.”
To make things stranger, Macii is getting married later this year. Conti will be there, likely with her new boyfriend, Spanish ice dancer Tim Dieck.
The Valentine’s Bachelorette 💌
American luger Sophia Kirkby wasn’t going to let Valentine’s Day in the Olympic Village pass her by. Before the games began, she adopted the title of most eligible bachelorette on Instagram, welcoming more than 2,500 message requests (and gaining 40,000 followers), before landing a spa date with a mystery man on Saturday.
Buon Appetito 🍝
Olympians are still limited in what they can broadcast from athlete-only areas, but the food hall is fair game once again. So far, the star of the show has been Olympic Rings-shaped pasta.
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Meanwhile, it feels wrong that the only beer being sold at official venues is Corona, and only in small bottles.
HaBs 👫
WaGs normally get all the love, but this year it is the husbands and boyfriends of athletes standing out, from Jake Paul to Myles Garrett to Breezy Johnson fiancé Connor Watkins.
According to the AP, Watkins:
Was “totally unaware that Johnson happened to be one of the best skiers on the planet” when they met via Bumble a few years ago
“works in construction back in the U.S.”
Offered a ring with an engraved piece of wood referencing Taylor Swift lyrics about her athlete fiancé, Travis Kelce.
We’re not sure everything adds up here, but we’re happy for the couple nonetheless!
Club Sportico is a community organized by Sportico, a digital media company launched in 2020 to cover the business side of sports. You can read breaking news, smart analysis, and in-depth features from Eben, Jacob and their colleagues at Sportico.com, and listen to the Sporticast podcast wherever you get your audio. Contact us at club@sportico.com.