A potential Olympic medal for Team USA was lost not to a rival, but to a treacherous sheet of ice. Recently, Corinne Stoddard suffered a costly slip, causing her to miss out on a potential medal. Now, news reporter Cheryl Preheim has offered an explanation for the mishaps.

“Racers are falling because of bad ice,” reported Cheryl Preheim of 11 Alive News on Instagram.

Their team spoke to Corrine Stoddard who was upset with what happened.

Preheim further reported, “Corinne Stoddard said the ice is more for figure skating than speed track. The temperature of the ice is different depending on the sport. Figure skating has softer, warmer ice, and that temperature is a big deal.”

“So a Zamboni driver explained it to me this way – hockey ice – 19 to 21 degrees, speed skating ice is the coldest at 16 to 17 degrees because the harder the ice, the colder the ice, the faster athletes will go. So this temperature for ice and speed skating is gonna make all the difference.”

Even “1 degree can be the difference between a win, a loss, or a fall.”

Alas, the sloppy ice has already claimed its first victim in the United States’ Corinne Stoddard while the short track mixed relay semifinal took place. Stoddard was leading the race when suddenly she lost her balance and slipped, colliding with South Korea’s Kim Gil-li.

Initially, the reason was considered faulty equipment. But now, it seems like the Olympic venue was to blame.

The event was at Milano Ice Skating Arena. And due to warmer-than-expected conditions, there were issues with soft ice that probably caused the incident.

However, it was not the first time Stoddard had slipped. She experienced a mishap during the quarterfinals, too.

The soft ice, better suited for figure skating, proved disastrous for speed skater Corinne Stoddard. Her fall during the semifinal not only cost her a shot at a medal but also eliminated the entire U.S. team and South Korea from the mixed relay final.

The issues weren’t limited to the speed skating track; problems also emerged during the Olympic figure skating events, where the podium itself caused damage to athletes’ equipment.

The Milan Cortina Olympic Organizing Committee apologizes to the figure skaters

The United States won the gold medal in figure skating at the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics. Team Japan finished second, and Team Italy won bronze. However, as the figure skaters took the podium, many of the athletes noticed minor damage to the blades of the figure skaters.

Madison Chock and Evan Bates, who were part of the gold-winning U.S. team, reported nicks and blemishes on their blades. Japan’s Kaori Sakamoto also noticed the same. Most even got off the podium to check their blades. It mostly happened because of anti-slip surfaces.

Next thing we know, the organizing committee of the Winter Olympics apologized to the athletes.

They are “taking steps to replace the surface to prevent a recurrence.”

“We also understand that some (National Olympic Committees) have offered their services to the impacted athletes from other countries in a true example of the Olympic spirit,” the committee added, “apologizes for the inconvenience caused and reiterates its commitment to ensuring the best possible conditions for all athletes.”

Based on the developments, many are indicating that the problem may have caused the duo of Chock and Bates to lose to France’s Laurence Fournier Beaudry and Guillaume Cizeron on Monday Night.

Regarding the matter, Japan also lodged a formal complaint.