How To Watch Figure Skating at the 2026 Winter Olympics

Figure skating is the perfect fusion of athleticism and artistry, bringing some of the most beautiful and high-stakes moments to the Winter Games. From the gravity-defying quadruple jumps in the men’s singles to the intricate lifts and romantic storytelling of ice dance, the sport is always a must-see spectacle.

At the 2026 Winter Olympics, each dramatic performance will take place at the Milano Ice Skating Arena in Milan, Italy. Because the city is six hours ahead of Eastern Time, U.S. fans should prepare for a “breakfast with champions” experience. Many of the most important medal-deciding sessions will air live during the morning and midday hours in North America.

If you can’t tune in early, don’t worry. NBC packages the day’s biggest moments into its nightly “Primetime in Milan” broadcast. The storylines this year look incredibly intense, particularly the battle for the podium between the dominant Asian teams and the North American stars.

To help you navigate it all, I’ve put together this guide on how to watch Olympic figure skating, featuring the full broadcast schedule and my top picks for TV plans.

Jump to:

• Olympic figure skating channels
• Olympic figure skating TV schedule
• Best Olympic figure skating TV plans

What channel is Olympic figure skating on?

You can watch the entire Olympic figure skating competition on Peacock in the U.S. The streaming service is the only place to catch every single men’s, women’s, pairs, and ice dance program live, ensuring you never miss a beat.

On traditional TV, crucial live coverage of the competitive short programs and free skates will appear on NBC and USA Network. Given the sport’s popularity, your local NBC affiliate will also feature extensive replay coverage during its nightly primetime broadcast.

Spanish-language coverage of select events may also be found on Telemundo or UNIVERSO.

2026 Winter Olympic figure skating schedule

Figure skating is the oldest winter Olympic sport, with its first Olympic appearance being at the 1908 Summer Olympics in London. The Winter Olympics as a separate event didn’t begin until 16 years later.

The 2026 schedule runs from February 6 to 19, featuring over 140 competitors from 35 nations. The high-stakes team event kicks things off, leading into the individual disciplines of men’s, women’s, pairs, and ice dance. Each discipline requires two segments to determine the final scores: a short program (singles and pairs) or rhythm dance (ice dance), followed by a free skate (singles and pairs) or free dance (ice dance).

To help you plan your viewing, I’ve listed the full broadcast schedule below. It covers every live session, complete with start times and the specific U.S. channels you’ll need.

Data effective as of post date.

Best ways to watch Olympic figure skating

Figure skating is a marquee Olympic event, spanning nearly the entire duration of the Winter Games with four distinct disciplines. With that much action to track—plus NBC’s high-profile primetime features—you need a reliable viewing method to keep up with the multiple disciplines.

Having a single, comprehensive TV plan is essential to make sure you catch the drama of every skate. Below are my top recommendations for guaranteed access.

Best overall: Peacock

Best live TV service: YouTube TV

2026 Olympic figure skating: Who and what to watch

Beyond the schedule and channel listings, understanding the drama on the ice is key to enjoying the Winter Olympics. Here are the biggest storylines, rivalries, and rules to know for Milan Cortina 2026.

The team event

The Olympic figure skating action kicks off with the team event, a strategic battle between the world’s top skating nations. Ten qualified countries enter one entry in each discipline (men’s, women’s, pairs, and ice dance). Points are awarded based on placement (10 points for first, 9 for second, etc.).

After the short programs/rhythm dance, the field is cut to the top five nations. These finalists then compete in the free skates/free dances to determine the medalists.

Countries are allowed two substitutions between the short and free segments. This creates a fascinating layer of strategy. Federations must decide whether to use their heavy hitters for both segments to guarantee points, or split the duties to keep their stars fresh for the individual events later in the Games.

Expect a gold-medal showdown between Team USA and Team Japan. While nations like Italy, Canada, and Georgia will fight for the bronze, the depth of the American and Japanese rosters puts them in a league of their own.

Men’s singles

The heavy favorite in men’s singles is Team USA’s Ilia Malinin. Known as the “Quad God,” he has dominated the cycle with technical content no other skater can match. Motivated by being left off the 2022 Olympic team, Malinin will not be content to just win. As the only skater in the world to complete a quad axel in competition, look for him to make Olympic history en route to gold with a record number of quad jumps punctuated by a backflip.

Yuma Kagiyama, the reigning Olympic silver medalist, is the frontrunner in a deep Japanese squad. He’s the only skater other than Malinin to break the 300-point barrier this season and will impress with his strong skating skills and delightful jazz short program.

Another major contender is Mikhail Shaidorov of Kazakhstan. He’s expected to put down some tough quad combinations as he attempts to build off his World Silver medal from last year.

You should also watch for France’s Adam Siao Him Fa and Italy’s Daniel Grassl. Meanwhile, the U.S. Olympic team is rounded out with the dynamic Andrew Torgashev and Maxim Naumov, who lost both parents last January when their plane collided with a helicopter over Washington, D.C.

Women’s singles

This discipline features a clash between the powerful Japanese team (led by retiring legend Kaori Sakamoto) and a resurgent American squad fielding three entries. Team USA counters with a powerhouse trio: reigning world champion Alysa Liu, reigning national champion Amber Glenn, and 2024 world medalist Isabeau Levito.

At least two women (Glenn and Japan’s Ami Nakai) will attempt triple axels, giving them an edge over their competitors. Independent Neutral Athlete Adeliia Petrosian has had limited international competitive opportunities but remains a dangerous spoiler for the podium.

Pairs

The pairs event promises to be closely contested. Two-time world champions Riku Miura and Ryuichi Kihara (JPN) will try to fight off several talented teams. Two-time world bronze medalists Sara Conti and Niccolò Macii aim for strong performances in their home Olympics. Meanwhile, the German team of Minerva Fabienne Hase and Nikita Volodin is hungry to improve on their silver medal at the 2025 World Championships.

Keep an eye on 2024 World Champions Deanna Stellato-Dudek and Maxime Deschamps from Canada with their assisted backflip. Originally from the United States, Stellato-Dudek is the oldest Olympic figure skater this year at 42.

Notably missing from the pairs competition will be reigning U.S. Champions Alisa Efimova and Misha Mitrofanov. Efimova is a native of Finland and was unable to secure U.S. citizenship in time for the games. Instead, the U.S. team will consist of Ellie Kam and Danny O’Shea, as well as Emily Chan and Spencer Akira Howe.

Ice dance

The U.S. boasts the reigning world champions, Madison Chock and Evan Bates. The married dance team will be making their fourth Olympic appearance together. Their biggest hurdles for gold will come from the Canadian team (Piper Gilles and Paul Poirier), the British duo (Lilah Fear and Lewis Gibson), and the newly formed French powerhouse team of Laurence Fournier-Beaudry and Guillaume Cizeron.

The strong U.S. ice dance contingent also includes Emilea Zingas and Vadym Kolesnik, a young team with a dramatic Romeo and Juliet free dance, and U.S. bronze medalists Christina Carreira and Anthony Ponomarenko.

Status of Russian athletes

Officially, Russia will not participate in the figure skating events at the 2026 Olympics. Due to the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, Russian and Belarusian athletes have been barred from international competition since February 2022.

However, the International Skating Union (ISU) permitted a limited qualification window for “Individually Neutral Athletes” (AIN). Only three skaters met the strict eligibility criteria at the September 2025 qualifying event in Beijing: Petr Gumennik (men’s singles) and Adeliia Petrosian (women’s singles) of Russia, and Viktoriia Safonova (women’s singles) of Belarus.

Because these skaters are competing as individuals without a national flag, Russia doesn’t have a team entry and will not participate in the team event.

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