KSL at the Games: Park City speed skater catches eyes for 8th-place finish, pink backpack

AT THE GAMES — The latest from competition at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan-Cortina, Italy, takes us to the Milano speed skating stadium, where a Park City speed skater made news for more than his eighth-place finish in the men's 5,000 meters.

Welcome back to KSL at the Games, where we highlight some of the performances of Utah athletes competing for Team USA and other countries in Italy.

First up, a pink backpack.

Park City's Dawson a hit for unique fantasy football punishment

Casey Dawson stumbled early en route to an eighth-place finish in the men's 5,000 meters final, crossing the finish line in 6 minutes, 11.88 seconds — or roughly eight seconds behind gold-medalist Sander Eitrem of Norway.

But plenty of eyes were on the 25-year-old from Utah for his unique fashion accessory.

Dawson brought a pink backpack and an oversized phone case with a fake foot attached to it to the Winter Games, the result of finishing last in his fantasy football league that includes 11 other skaters, he explained in a video from NBC Sports.

"The backpack is not very big; it can't fit a lot of stuff in it," he explained. "But whenever I have it at the side of the ice, I'll look at it and it gives me a little smile every time I see it."

Dawson, the University of Utah graduate who grew up in Kearns before his family moved to Park City, is competing in his second Olympics for Team USA. He claimed a bronze medal in team pursuit four years ago, and returns to the Olympics following his first world-cup win, a gold medal in the 5,000 meters among his five overall world cup titles.

He's the only American man qualified for the men's long distance races this year, and he'll also compete in the 1,500 meters, 10,000 meters and the team pursuit.

But he's also like most Americans, devoted to his fantasy football league — willing to take his recompense for a lost season.

"It keeps me humble," he recently told the Associated Press. "It keeps me grounded. It puts a smile on my face every time I see it. It's kind of ridiculous, but it's fun. It keeps everything fun and light-hearted."

Utahns Jackson, Bowe finish top-6 in women's 1000m final

Elsewhere on the track, a pair of Utahns finished just outside a podium finish in the women's 1,000-meter short track final Monday.

Salt Lake City resident Brittany Bowe finished fourth, and Jackson — the Team USA flagbearer and a Salt Lake Community College graduate from Ocala, Florida — added a sixth-place finish.

Bowe will have another chance to add to the Olympic hardware she earned with a bronze-medal finish in Beijing before she is set to retire following the 2025-26 season. The 37-year-old will also compete in the 500 meters.

The Netherlands took the top two spots on the podium, led by Jutta Leerdam, the fiancee of American YouTuber-turned-bozer Jake Paul who set an Olympic record in 1:12.31.

Team USA women's hockey cruises to 3-0 start

Salt Lake City part-time resident and team captain Hilary Knight notched two assists as Team USA women's hockey notched a 5-0 win over Switzerland in the third match of group play Monday.

Hannah Bilka, Alex Carpenter, Caroline Harvey, Haley Winn and Joy Dunne each scored a goal for the United States, which has outscored its first three opponents 15-1 and will face North American rival Canada on Tuesday in what is widely believed to be a preview of the gold-medal match.

Also Tuesday, the United States will play for a gold medal in mixed-doubles curling for the first time after Korey Dropkin and Cory Thiesse upset Italy's Stefania Constantini and Amos Mosaner, 9-8 in a semifinal match.

"There's no better way to make the Olympic final than to go through the reigning Olympic champions," Dropkin told ESPN after the Italians had defeated the United States pair earlier in the day.

Tuesday's medal events

• Freestyle Skiing — Men's Freeski Slopestyle Final (4:30 a.m. MST)
• Short Track Speed Skating — Mixed Teams Relay (5 a.m. MST)
• Cross-Country Skiing — Women's Sprint Classic Final (5:13 a.m. MST)
• Cross-Country Skiing — Men's Sprint Classic Final (5:25 a.m. MST)
• Biathlon — Men's 20km Individual (5:30 a.m. MST)
• Alpine Skiing — Women's Team Combined Slalom (6 a.m. MST)
• Curling — Mixed Doubles Bronze Medal Game (6:05 a.m. MST)
• Curling — Mixed Doubles Gold Medal Game (10:05 a.m. MST)
• Luge — Women's Singles Run 4 (10:34 a.m. MST)
• Ski Jumping — Mixed Team, Final (12 p.m. MST)

Utahns at the Games

Here are the 83 athletes with ties to Utah at the 2026 Winter Olympics

Here's the complete list of athletes with Utah ties, courtesy of the Utah Sports Commission.

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