Ties Record as Most Decorated American Winter Olympian
South Korea’s Kim Yooran Finishes 22nd, Misses Fourth Run
Elana Meyers Taylor (41), a member of the United States national bobsleigh team, has finally struck gold on her fifth Olympic attempt after four previous tries.
Taylor Elana Meyers (41), a member of the United States bobsleigh team, is celebrating after winning the gold medal in the women's monobob. United Press International / Yonhap News Agency
On February 17, Taylor recorded a time of 59.51 seconds in the fourth run of the women’s monobob event at the 2026 Milan-Cortina d'Ampezzo Winter Olympics, held at the Cortina Sliding Centre in Italy. With a combined time of 3 minutes 57.93 seconds over runs one through four, Taylor edged out Laura Nolte of Germany, who finished in 3 minutes 57.97 seconds, by just 0.04 seconds to claim the gold medal.
Taylor had previously stood on the Olympic podium five times: one bronze medal at the 2010 Vancouver Games, one silver medal at the 2014 Sochi Games, one silver medal at the 2018 Pyeongchang Games, and one silver and one bronze medal at the 2022 Beijing Games. However, she had never managed to secure that final missing piece, a Winter Olympic gold medal. Now, at her fifth Olympic Games, Taylor has finally hung a gold medal around her neck, completing what feels like a fairy-tale story.
With this gold medal, the "Queen of Bobsleigh" Taylor has drawn level with speed skater Bonnie Blair as the "most decorated American athlete in Winter Olympic history." Taylor said, "I cannot believe my name is listed alongside Blair's," adding, "At my first Olympics in Vancouver in 2010, Blair was one of the people who welcomed me warmly. It is unbelievable and deeply moving to be mentioned in the same breath as her."
She is also well known as the mother of two sons: her older son, who has hearing impairment and Down syndrome, and her younger son, who has a hearing impairment. For her sons, who cannot hear well, she has often waved her palm toward the broadcast cameras during competitions, with the words "Mommy loves you" written on her hand. Taylor said, "I hope the kids remember everything, stay calm, and enjoy it," and added, "When they get a little older, someday they will find out that their mom is an Olympic champion," expressing her overwhelming emotions. Ahead of these Games, she also said, "There is light at the end of the tunnel," and, "I want to give hope to many parents raising children with disabilities."
Finally, she said with a smile, "It has been really tough because of various issues, including a back injury," adding, "For now, I am going to focus on celebrating this medal." Taylor will go after another medal later that night in the women’s two-woman bobsleigh event, which will be held at the same venue at 10 p.m.
Meanwhile, Kim Yooran (34) of the Gangwon Provincial Government, who competed in the same event, finished 22nd overall with a combined time of 3 minutes 2.37 seconds over the first three runs. Only the top 20 athletes advance to the fourth run, so her race ended after the third run. Kim had also made history at the 2022 Beijing Games by becoming the first Korean athlete to compete in the newly introduced monobob event, where she finished 18th.
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