The atmosphere in Milan is truly electric right now. While the winter sun stands over the Italian Alps, something is happening in Milan's arenas that sports and dance enthusiasts have been waiting for for years. In my over thirty years in the dance world, I have learned that passion and technique appear everywhere, whether on a parquet floor or a glass-smooth ice rink. Today, we aren't just looking at pirouettes, but at the brutal, yet oh-so-elegant power of Olympic ice hockey.
The return of the titans
The Milan & Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics mark a historic moment for the sport. For the first time since 2014, the stars of the NHL, the world's largest ice hockey league, are back in action. Names like Sidney Crosby and Connor McDavid dominate the ice in the brand-new Milano Santagiulia Arena. For those who think ice hockey is only about hitting and colliding: take a good look at their footwork. The way these athletes glide, turn, and accelerate across the ice is more like complex choreography than a simple match.
In the hallways of the dance studio, we often talk about 'flow' and 'edge control'. In ice hockey players, you see this in its most extreme form. They use the edges of their skates just as we use the balls of our feet during a fast spin. It is pure technique that requires years of training. The men's tournament, which runs from February 11th to 22nd, shows a level we haven't seen on the Olympic stage in a long time.
More than just a game: The emotion of the Games
What makes the Olympic Games so special are the stories behind the medals. While the ice hockey players fight for every inch, elsewhere at the Games, we see moments of deep humanity. For instance, there was the heartbreaking but beautiful tribute from Norwegian biathlete Sturla Holm Laegreid. He won a bronze medal in the 20 kilometers and dedicated it to his deceased teammate. In an interview with GVA, you could see how sports sometimes momentarily fade into the background for real emotion.
We see that same passion in Germany's Julia Taubitz, who continued the dominance in luge with gold. It is these moments of extreme concentration and release that always touch me so deeply as a dancer. Whether you are lying on a sled at 140 kilometers per hour or dancing a solo for a full house, the mental focus is identical. You can taste the atmosphere of these victories in the videos from Eurosport.
The forbidden backflip and the boundary with dance
One of the most discussed topics in Milan is American figure skater Ilia Malinin. He did something that had been banned in his sport for nearly fifty years: the backflip. Too dangerous, they used to say. But Malinin performs it with an ease as if he’s just taking a step aside. The crowd in Milan goes wild, and honestly, my dancer's heart skips a beat too. Breaking rules to take the art form—because that’s what figure skating is—to a higher level is something we constantly do in the dance world as well.
And what about our own 'ice queen' Jutta Leerdam? She managed to withstand the pressure and took gold in the 1,000 meters with a new Olympic record. The way she carves her turns is a lesson in biomechanics. The strength in her legs and the stability in her core are exactly the qualities a top salsa dancer needs for powerful spins and lifts.
What can dancers learn from ice sports?
At Miss Salsa, we always look at what we can learn from other disciplines. The ice hockey players and skaters in Milan show us a few important things that are directly applicable in the dance studio:
- Core Stability: Without a rock-solid core, you can't turn at that speed on the ice, and you can't perform a tight double pirouette either.
- Explosiveness: An ice hockey player's first push-off is pure power. In the dance world, we call this 'attack'. It gives your movements dynamics.
- Spatial awareness: An ice hockey team moves as one organism. That is exactly what you need in a formation dance or when you are on a crowded dance floor with a partner.
The magic of the Belgian Ice Bears
A nice surprise for our southern neighbors was the bronze medal for the Belgian Ice Bears in short track. It is the ninth Belgian medal at this tournament, which shows that the passion for ice also runs deep in the Low Countries. The success of athletes like Hanne Desmet, who is chasing gold under the guidance of national coach Joey Mantia, motivates a whole new generation to put on skates (or dance shoes).
Whether you look at the strategic power plays in the Rho Ice Hockey Arena or the graceful strokes of the long-track speed skaters, one thing is clear: movement is universal. The Games in Milan show that technique is the foundation, but it is the emotion and the daring that turn a sportsman or sportswoman into a true artist. I will be glued to the screen for the finals in the coming days, because we won't see this level of 'ice dance' again for a while.