Get to know Iowa’s winter Olympians and Paralympians

Elite athletes with Iowa ties have competed in the Olympics and Paralympics for decades. Here are a few you should know.

Hometown pride is in abundance during this year’s Winter Olympic and Winter Paralympic Games in Milan Cortina. Several athletes with Iowa ties will be competing on the world’s biggest stage in the speedskating, sled hockey, and ice hockey categories. They’ll be looking to take their place on those coveted podiums after giving it their all and putting years of hard work, dedication, and practice to the test. If they’re able to find success, they’ll be joining elite rankings alongside many other Iowans who have competed and medaled in various Games throughout the decades.

From Zach Stoppelmoor and Kevin McKee to Andy Yohe and Stephani Victor, these athletes have represented The Hawkeye State across the globe. If you want to cheer them on while they go for gold, click here for the 2026 Olympics schedule and here for the 2026 Paralympics schedule.

This year’s Olympians and Paralympians

Zach Stoppelmoor

26-year-old speedskater Zach Stoppelmoor is competing at the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics as part of Team USA. The West Des Moines native is the first Iowan to compete on the USA’s speedskating team. Stoppelmoor was introduced to the world of speedskating when he was just six years old. He saw a flyer advertising the sport at school and met with a local coach soon after. As Stoppelmoor recalled to Iowa Public Radio, “He was like, ‘Hey, you’re pretty fast. You should try out speed skating.’ And I was like, ‘OK, I’ll give it a chance.’”

At eight years old, Stoppelmoor set goals for himself to compete in the Olympics and to win a medal while he’s there. He’s already ticked the first goal off his list. Here’s hoping he’s able to check off the second, too.

Kevin McKee

Davenport’s Kevin McKee has competed in the 2014, 2018, and 2022 Paralympics as part of the US National Sled Hockey team, and he’ll be taking to the ice again during the Milan Games. A graduate of Wilbur Wright College, McKee is a three-time Paralympic gold medalist. He first started playing sled hockey when he was eight years old after his mom came across an advertisement for a local club. The 35-year-old joined the national team back in 2010 and has since become a five-time world sled hockey champion.

When he’s not on the ice, McKee can be found spending time with his wife, Erica McKee (who’s also a sled hockey competitor!), playing video games, or watching the Chicago Bears.

Samuel Hlavaj

Samuel Hlavaj may hail from Martin, Slovakia, but the 24-year-old goaltender has been part of the Iowa Wild’s organization since 2024. He’s slated to represent his home country of Slovakia at the 2026 Winter Olympics. This season, he’s netted one shoutout for the Iowa Wild and has a .885 SV% for the Iowa Heartlanders. Hlavaj previously played for Slovakia’s national hockey team during the 2016/2017 IIHF U-18 World Championship, where he won a silver medal, and three times for the IIHF World Junior Championships and the IIHF World Championships.

David Špaček

Fellow Iowa Wild player David Špaček will also be competing in the 2026 Milan Cortina Games, where the defenseman will lace his skates for the Czech Olympic team. He’s represented the Czech Republic before at the 2024 and 2025 IIHF World Championships. In 2024, he helped his teammates secure a gold medal after completing five assists. Špaček was also part of the silver medal-winning team at the 2023 IIHF World Junior Tournament.

Iowa Wild alums

David Špaček and Samuel Hlavaj aren’t the only players with Iowa Wild ties to grace the Olympic ice this year. Several of the team’s alums will be joining them, including:

• Louis Boudon – France
• Jesper Wallstedt – Sweden
• Erik Haula – Finland
• Nico Sturm – Germany
• Darcy Kuemper – Canada
• Matt Boldy – USA
• Joel Eriksson Ek – Sweden

Athletes from years past

Karlos Kirby

Karlos Kirby was born and raised in West Des Moines and graduated from Valley High School. He competed for the US bobsledding team at the 1992 Olympics in Albertville, France, and at the 1994 Games in Lillehammer, Norway. When Kirby was named to the 1992 bobsledding team, he became the first Iowa athlete to compete at the Winter Olympics. He was also one of the first US bobsledders to win a World Championships medal in nearly 30 years when he brought home the bronze at the 1993 FIBT World Championships.

Timothy LeDuc

Timothy LeDuc is a retired pair skater who competed alongside Ashley Cain throughout their career. LeDuc was born and raised in Cedar Rapids. They first became interested in figure skating after watching the 2002 Games in Salt Lake and began taking lessons soon after. LeDuc and Cain competed together at the 2022 Olympics in Beijing and placed eighth, but the moment was important to LeDuc for another reason: They became the first openly non-binary athlete to compete in the Winter Olympics. Since retiring, LeDuc has served on US Figure Skating’s Athlete Advisory Committee.

Andy Yohe

Andy Yohe is a Paralympian from Bettendorf (near Davenport). He competed for the US sled hockey team during the 2006, 2010, and 2014 Winter Paralympics. At the 2006 Games in Torino, Italy, Yohe and his teammates took home the bronze. They upped their game in 2010 during the Vancouver, Canada Paralympics and won the gold medal in a 2-0 defeat over Japan. Yohe took a break from competitive sled hockey for a few years, but he rejoined the national team in 2014 and served as their captain during the Sochi Games. They took home the gold that year, too.

Stephani Victor

Stephani Victor is a multi-medalist Paralympic alpine skier hailing from Ames. She began competing in the Winter Games in 2002, taking home the bronze medal and serving as a torchbearer during the Salt Lake relay. In 2006, Victor skied into victory (the puns just write themselves sometimes) when she earned the gold medal in the slalom competition. She took home another gold medal during the 2010 Paralympic Winter Games, and a host of other accolades in the years between.

This article first appeared on Good Info News Wire and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.

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