Kimi Goetz announced that she will not compete at the 2026 Milano Cortina Olympics, citing her prolonged battle with injuries and her struggle to find her footing. The speed skater is no stranger to setbacks, having missed the 2018 edition due to a concussion and finishing outside the podium at the 2022 Beijing Olympics.
Kimi Goetz Gets Real about Her Olympic Participation
Goetz competed at the ISU World Cup in Calgary in January 2025, finishing seventh in the 1000 m while trailing the top skaters. She then posted underwhelming performances in early February, bringing her season to an early end.
Goetz’s relationship with the Winter Games hasn’t been one for the record books. She qualified for the Beijing Games after earning second-place finishes in the 500m and 1000m events in Milwaukee, and finishing among the top 10 in the latter event in the main event. Aiming for gold, the 31-year-old wished to qualify for Milano as well, but her season-ending back surgery in the 2024-25 season obstructed her path.
As per her recent Instagram post, she shared a couple of photos from her competition days, announcing that the time for Winter Games qualification had passed. She also stated that she couldn’t find her rhythm on the course and would take more time to forge a comeback. She wrote:
“I am not going to the Olympics. 💔 Over this Olympic cycle, my goals grew from attending Milan to fighting for medals there. I believe I did everything in my control after surgery to fight to keep that dream alive, but I need more time, and unfortunately, there isn’t any left.”
She then expressed gratitude to the people who supported her during that tough time, saying she was able to look past the disappointment of not making the Olympic team or winning any medals.
Kimi Goetz’s Journey from Inline Skating to Speedskating
Goetz, who was raised in Flemington, New Jersey, began her athletic journey in roller skating and shifted to inline skating at the age of nine, competing at the World Championships. In later years, she made a deliberate transition to ice, as she aspired to compete at the Olympic level.
She finished fifth at the 2014 Olympic Team Trials and failed to make the US short track speedskating team, as only three spots were available. At the 2022–23 ISU Speed Skating World Cup, she won her first 1000m gold medal and four other podium finishes. That year, she earned the season title in the World Cup and ended the season among the top five. Her first World Championships medal came in the 500m at the 2024 World Single Distances Speed Skating Championships.
