Back to Her Roots: Speed Skater Giorgia Birkeland’s Full-Circle Olympic Return
She used to stand at the start line wondering if she was ready. She doesn't anymore.
Giorgia Birkeland is headed to her second Olympic Games. The version of her stepping onto the start line in Milan looks nothing like the one who showed up in Beijing.
The Start Line
There was a time when the start line felt like a threat. Birkeland could feel the doubt creeping in before the race even started.
"If you go into a race like that, you've already lost before you’ve even started."
She used to stand there running through every way it could go wrong. Now, that's gone.
"I don't have time for any of that anymore. Every race is an opportunity to perform at my best. It's a privilege to be here."
Her mindset shift came, frankly, through repetition.
"Honestly, I find most of my confidence by doing things that are challenging. When you think it's so hard and you don't know if you can do it… and then you push through and you're like, dang, I just did that."
That's the version of Birkeland going to Milan. The one who steps on the line thinking: I'm going to go out there and prove it.
A Rising Tide Lifts All Boats
Birkeland skates team pursuit alongside teammates Mia Manganello and Greta Meyers. They take turns leading, rotating to the back after each lap to draft off each other. The finish time is taken when the third skater crosses the line. So the team is only as fast as its weakest leg.
"The blessing of being on a team is it brings out the best in everyone. You don't want to let them down, and they don't want to let you down."
That dynamic shows up every day in training. She laughed describing what it looks like alongside Mia.
"It's like a game of who can one-up each other in the best way. I'll see Mia dying over there on bike blocks and I'm like, well, I gotta be dying just as much as her."
From Surprise to Intention
Beijing 2022 wasn't even in Birkeland’s plans. She had never competed on the World Cup circuit. She just, well, made the Games.
"It was super unexpected. Overwhelming. I felt like I might've taken someone's spot…like I had something to prove just by being there."
Four years later, her mindset is entirely different.
"I knew going into this year my goal was to make it for team pursuit. I checked that box. Now we can focus on getting a medal."
Full Circle
There's one more layer. Birkeland has Italian roots.
Her mom is Italian. She and her sister lived there until she was two. Now, years later, she'll skate onto Olympic ice on the soil where her story started.
"My Italian cousins have never even seen me skate and they're all coming to support. That means the world. If I could choose anywhere in the world for the Winter Games, Italy would be it."
ABOUT THIS SERIES
I'm Amy Wotovich and I am on a mission to interview 100% of Team USA's 2026 Olympic and Paralympic athletes to create the most comprehensive mindset record of a single Games cycle. What do elite competitors actually believe about pressure, identity, failure, and joy? Giorgia Birkeland is one of hundreds of athletes sharing their unfiltered answers. Follow the journey!
