14 Olympians Finally Get Their Medals at 2026 Games

Fourteen Olympic athletes finally felt medals around their necks this weekend, years after they actually earned them on the slopes and snow.

At the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, biathletes from the 2010 and 2014 Games received their rightfully earned medals during a special ceremony at the Antholz-Anterselva Biathlon Arena. The crowd of over 20,000 spectators erupted in cheers as IOC President Kirsty Coventry presented each athlete with the hardware they'd been waiting up to 16 years to hold.

The ceremony honored athletes from two races where original medalists were later disqualified for doping violations. France's Martin Fourcade claimed gold in the Vancouver 2010 men's 15km mass start, with Slovakia's Pavol Hurajt taking silver and Austria's Christoph Sumann earning bronze.

For the Sochi 2014 men's relay, Germany's four-man team moved up to gold, Austria claimed silver, and Norway took bronze. Some athletes, like Sumann, received medals from both ceremonies.

"This is a really special moment for these athletes," President Coventry said after the ceremony. "To be able to celebrate them here, in front of thousands of fans and alongside their families, is what the Olympic Games are all about."

The athletes chose to receive their medals at a live Olympic venue rather than in private ceremonies or at their home countries. Standing on the podium with their teammates and families, hearing national anthems play, they experienced the Olympic moment they'd missed years ago.

Why This Inspires

The ceremony represents more than corrected records. It shows that fairness eventually prevails, even when justice takes over a decade. These athletes never stopped training, competing, and believing in clean sport despite watching cheaters stand where they belonged.

The IOC's commitment to reallocating medals at future Games gives athletes the celebration they deserve. Instead of receiving a medal in the mail or at a quiet office ceremony, they get the roar of the crowd, the embrace of loved ones, and the full Olympic experience.

For younger athletes watching, the message rings clear: play fair, work hard, and your moment will come. The podium belongs to those who earn it honestly.

Standing in front of 20,000 cheering fans, 14 athletes proved that truth has no expiration date.