Italian Skater Wins 13th Olympic Medal at Age 35

At 35, most athletes are long retired, but Arianna Fontana just skated into the history books at her home Olympics in Milan.

The Italian speed skater won silver in the women's 500m on Thursday, earning her 13th Olympic medal and tying her country's all-time record. She now shares the title with fencer Edoardo Mangiarotti for most Olympic medals by an Italian athlete ever.

Fontana's journey started at age 15 when she won bronze at the 2006 Turin Olympics. She admits she "had no idea what was happening" back then and was "too young to really understand" the moment.

Twenty years later, she's one of the faces of these Games. She carried Italy's flag at the opening ceremony, leading her nation in front of tens of thousands of cheering fans at San Siro stadium.

The path to medal number 13 wasn't easy. A series of injuries, including a hip problem in October, forced her to scale back her plans and focus only on short track events instead of adding long track competitions.

In Thursday's final, Fontana even needed emergency repairs to her skate after a first-corner collision forced a restart. But she kept her composure and held off two challengers to claim silver behind Netherlands' Xandra Velzeboer.

Why This Inspires

Fontana's secret to two decades of excellence comes down to something simple but powerful: love. She loves the sport and has learned to love herself through the journey.

"I do have experience, but I have the same drive I did when I was 15," she told the BBC. "I never get on the ice just to show up."

She's also learned to listen to her body and mind, taking more breaks between competitions and managing the mental pressure that comes with high expectations. Working with her coach and husband Anthony Lobello, she's found the balance between pushing herself and knowing her limits.

She considered retirement before these Games but didn't feel that inner voice telling her it was time. Having the Olympics in her home country of Italy gave her extra motivation to keep going.

Fontana has now won at least one medal in every Olympic short track distance and is the only woman to reach the podium at six straight Winter Games.

Her hometown waited to celebrate her first Olympic medal in 2006, and twenty years later, the entire nation is celebrating her 13th.