With eyes set on the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games, more than 400 athletes from around the world have found a decisive boost in their preparation through Olympic Solidarity scholarships. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) program, which aims to ensure equal opportunities for athletes from all corners of the globe, has enabled participants from 87 National Olympic Committees (NOCs) to train and compete at the highest level during the demanding 2024–2025 season.
Since the first scholarships were awarded in the fall of 2023, the impact has been remarkable. Such is the case for Japanese snowboarder Taiga Hasegawa, Brazilian Nicole Silveira in skeleton, Latvians Roberts Plūme and Mārtiņš Bots in luge, and Italian Flora Tabanelli in freestyle skiing. All of them have achieved outstanding results that bring them closer to their Olympic dream, highlighting the key role of the support received.
Outstanding results and Olympic dreams
One of the names that has shone brightest this season is Taiga Hasegawa, who won a silver medal at the FIS Snowboard, Freestyle and Freeski World Championships. Thanks to the scholarship, the Japanese athlete has been able to train and compete internationally, allowing him to dream of reaching the top podium in big air and slopestyle in 2026. Flora Tabanelli also stood out, winning the Park & Pipe Crystal Globe and taking the Big Air World Cup in Tignes alongside her brother, fueled by support that allows her to train both on snow and artificial facilities.
Brazilian Nicole Silveira made history by becoming the first athlete from her country to win a World Cup medal in winter sports, attributing that achievement to her ability to train in Europe and North America. Latvians Plūme and Bots also celebrated a historic silver medal at the luge World Championships, while Spaniards Oriol Cardona Coll and Ana Alonso Rodríguez shone in ski mountaineering, a discipline set to debut at Milano Cortina. Joining them are Belgian skater Stijn Desmet and Croatian Zrinka Ljutić, all testifying to the transformative power of Olympic Solidarity in the pursuit of Olympic success.
