Kim Celebrates Silver: Olympic Champ's Joyful Defeat

Chloe Kim, the U.S. snowboarder, saw her hopes for a historic Olympic three-peat dashed at the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics, but she celebrated her silver medal victory anyway. Kim's protégé ultimately took the gold in the women's halfpipe snowboarding finals in Livigno, Italy, on Thursday, according to NPR News. This outcome was particularly remarkable given that Kim was unsure if she would even be able to compete a month prior, as reported by Time.

Kim, who had previously won gold medals at the PyeongChang 2018 and Beijing Olympics, had been dealing with a dislocated left shoulder since early January, as noted by Time. Despite the setback, Kim's reaction to the silver medal was jubilant. "I mean, a month ago, I wasn't even sure if I would be here," she said, according to Time.

The competition took place in Livigno, Italy, on Thursday, February 12, 2026, as reported by NPR News. Kim had finished first in qualifying earlier in the week, according to Time.

While Kim's performance was a major story, other news events were also unfolding. A US judge blocked the Department of Defense from stripping Senator Mark Kelly of his military benefits, according to NPR News. Additionally, Russia launched a large-scale attack on Ukrainian cities, causing widespread damage and outages, and Ukraine retaliated with a power outage in a Russian region, as reported by NPR News.