USA’s Hilary Knight named flag bearer for 2026 Winter Olympic closing ceremony

One of the greatest players to ever play the game is capping off her Olympic career with one of the highest honors in sports.

On Friday, the United States Olympic Committee announced that women’s hockey forward Hilary Knight will be one of the American flag bearers for the closing ceremony at the 2026 Winter Games.

Knight will be joined by ice dancer Evan Bates, who helped Team USA win the Team Event in Figure Skating, while taking home the silver medal with his wife, Madison Chock, in the Ice Dance competition.

The Milano-Cortina Olympics were Knight’s last kick at the can on sport’s biggest stage. The 36-year-old was part of a solid American team that had a solid mix of youth and veteran talent. The combination paid off, as the U.S. put forth one of the most dominant performances in Olympic hockey history, outscoring its opponents 33-2 across seven games, capping it off with the country’s third gold medal in women’s hockey, and the first since PyeongChang in 2018.

Knight had herself a memorable end to her Olympic tenure. The Sun Valley, Idaho native scored three goals and six points in the tournament, placing her tied for 11th among all scorers. She also scored the game-tying goal in the final against Canada, becoming the all-time goal and points leader in U.S. women’s Olympic hockey history.

Knight exits the Olympic scene with 15 goals and 18 assists for 33 points in 29 games. She sits third in goals and points as an Olympian, trailing only Canadian legends Hayley Wickenheiser and Marie-Philip Poulin.

Across five Winter Games, Knight won two gold medals and three silver. She’s also the most decorated player in IIHF Women’s World Championship history, with 10 gold medals and five silver.

The Closing Ceremony is set to take place at the Verona Arena in Verona, Italy, almost halfway between the host cities of Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo. Festivities on Sunday are scheduled to begin around 2:30 p.m. ET.