Amber Glenn came to the Winter Olympics with gold in her sights, and after helping Team USA win gold in the team event, it seemed very possible! But in the women’s singles short program, her performance didn’t go as planned.

A few missteps left her in 13th place. Watching it all was heartbreaking, and she cried on national TV. And now, weeks later, she opened up about the support system.

“Yeah, of course, my coach Damon,” she responded when asked who she immediately wanted to hear from after her performance.

“But it’s also hard, especially after the short program, sharing in that devastation because I know that it hurt him to see me so disappointed.”

Amber Glenn has worked with Damon Allen since 2022, and their bond goes beyond technique and choreography. He has been part of her growth as both an athlete and a person. That is why the pain is shared.

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Then there is her sister.

“And then my sister, she’s always very encouraging, very grounding for me. So whether it’s positive or negative, she’s always very, very safe for me to go to.”

That sense of safety mattered even more as criticism online began to grow during the Games. Some of it was tied to comments Amber Glenn had made about the political climate for LGBTQ+ people. After her short program result, the reaction only intensified.

Her younger sister, Brooke Glenn, did not stay quiet, though.

She wrote a personal op-ed in Teen Vogue, calling out the “ugliness and hate” directed at Amber.

Brooke made it clear that her sister did not deserve attacks for speaking her mind or for being authentic during the Olympics. And in the middle of all that noise, one source of comfort remained completely unaware of medals, placements, or headlines.

“Getting pictures and FaceTiming my dog,” Amber Glenn recalled, “And that was really nice because I’m like, she has no idea what’s going on. She’s just excited to see me, so.”

That naivety gave her room to breathe. But the comfort was preceded by an experience that shook everything.

One missed jump changed everything for Amber Glenn

The Olympic heartbreak of Amber Glenn was in seconds. And the whole world saw it.

Feb. 17, 2026, in a packed arena in Milan, Glenn took the ice in the women’s singles short program with the tide in her favor. She had already assisted Team USA in winning the gold in the team event.

Her season had been strong. The confidence was there. Then came the triple axel. It is a jump she loves. But this time, it slipped away.

The bid was demoted and rescinded, at the expense of her points. Her body language had shifted when she had come down on the double instead. Her rapid movements became less sharp. The exultation with which the program began had changed.

By the time her music ended, the result felt written. Her score, 67.39, placed her 13th going into the free skate.

Right there on Olympic ice, Amber Glenn broke down.

“I have always been known to wear my heart on my sleeve, which is what makes me relatable, but it also makes it hard for me to hide how I feel,” Glenn told reporters later.

“And in that moment, it was soul-crushing. Because I did the hard stuff, and it was the easiest thing, my favorite jump, that just got away from me.”

“I was devastated because I lost the happiness and the enjoyment that I wanted to have out there on the ice to say, ‘I fought for everything, I did everything I could,’” she said. “That’s what I truly wanted, and that’s what I missed out on….When I was little, I always imagined me doing a spiral and looking up and being like, ‘I’m at the Olympics.’ That’s what I want.”

Two days later, she had another chance.

On February 19, Amber Glenn came back to the free skate.

No tears. No visible doubt. She scored 147.52 on one of her best shows of the season.

The power was back. The fight was clear. She had risen through the ranks to become the 5th overall by the end of the night.