Nurse-Athletes Shine in Milano Cortina as Paralympics Approach
- Nurses are competing on the world’s biggest stage. Several registered nurses are representing their countries at the 2026 Winter Olympics and Paralympics while continuing careers in healthcare.
- Clinical skills translate to elite sport. Discipline, decision-making under pressure, and resilience are helping nurse-athletes succeed at the highest levels of competition.
- Nursing doesn’t limit ambition. These athletes – from para-skiers to a Montana State nursing alum who just shocked the Nordic field – prove that a nursing career can coexist with Olympic‑level goals.
The Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics officially wrapped up last night after 17 days of competition in Italy, but nurse‑athletes aren’t done chasing medals just yet. The Winter Paralympics kick off March 6–15, giving nurses and nursing students one more chance to cheer on their own on the world stage.
We all know the juggle is real: long shifts, critical decisions, and the emotional demands of patient care. Now imagine adding grueling training schedules, international travel, and the immense pressure of competing on the world stage. Sounds impossible, right? Not for these nurses! They're proving that with passion and perseverance, you can conquer anything.
Let's meet some of the inspiring nurses who traded their scrubs for speed suits, representing their nations and our profession with pride.
2026 Winter Olympics Nurse-Athletes
Anna Pryce (Cross-Country Skiing, Great Britain)
Montana State University College of Nursing alum Anna Pryce balanced one of the state’s most demanding nursing programs with elite Nordic ski racing, and then went on to shatter expectations at the 2026 Winter Olympics as the only female Nordic skier for Great Britain, earning the best-ever result by a British woman in the sprint classic. The Canmore, Alberta–born skier, who raced for the Montana State Bobcats while finishing her nursing degree in Bozeman, turned that double life of 6 a.m. intervals, clinicals, and night shifts into a breakout Olympic run that few outside her team saw coming.
Erin Martin (Para Nordic Skiing, USA)
Seattle Children's Hospital RN Erin Martin qualified for the 2026 Winter Paralympics after a spinal cord injury. She skis cross-country para events while balancing her career as a pediatric nurse.
Kelsey O’Driscoll (Para Alpine Skiing, USA)
Making her Paralympic debut in Milan-Cortina, O’Driscoll is a Registered Nurse and asthma care coordinator. Interestingly, she also works as a ski patroller, effectively combining her medical expertise with her life on the slopes. She recently earned her first World Cup win in late 2025, making her a serious medal contender.
Nicole Rocha Silveira (Skeleton, Brazil)
This Brazilian skeleton athlete and trained nurse slides down tracks at breakneck speeds. She traded scrubs for a helmet, representing her country (Brazil) while working nursing shifts at Alberta Children's Hospital in Canada. Silveira posted the best Winter Olympic sliding result ever by a Brazilian athlete, finishing 11th overall.
Trailblazing Nurse Winter Olympians from U.S. History
Gretchen Fraser (Alpine Skiing, USA)
Fraser, the first American to win Olympic skiing gold and silver (1948), was also a nurse, including work supporting rehabilitation efforts tied to disabled and wounded veterans.
Alex (Shaffer) Wubbels (Alpine Skiing, USA)
Wubbels competed in the 1998 and 2002 Winter Olympics. She later made national headlines for her advocacy after a 2017 arrest during a shift when she refused to allow a police officer to draw blood from an unconscious patient.
Nina Roth (Curling, USA)
Roth earned a nursing degree and has worked as a registered nurse, including during her 2018 and 2022 Olympic curling years.
Brittani Coury (Para Snowboarding, USA)
After losing her leg following multiple surgeries, she became a nurse specifically to help others the way her nurses helped her. She famously worked as a front line nurse during the COVID-19 pandemic while training for the previous Games in 2018 and 2022.
FIGS Supports the Medical Teams
FIGS is outfitting over 150 U.S. Olympic healthcare pros, including nurses, for Milano Cortina 2026. "Every record and podium is built on years of unseen effort, and healthcare professionals are the ones who help create that foundation," said ski legend Lindsey Vonn, partnering with FIGS.
These stories remind us nurses don't just save lives in hospitals, they medal on the world stage too. The real nurse-athletes competing at Milano Cortina 2026 deserve the spotlight, because they’re doing something most of us can barely imagine: charting by day, chasing podiums by night.
Though the Milano Cortina Olympics has concluded, you can still cheer on nurse-athletes at the Paralympics (March 6-15) on NBC and Peacock.
🤔Nurses, are you watching the nurses at the Olympics and Paralympics? Share your thoughts below.
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