A seasoned U.S.-born figure skater is making history: Deanna Stellato-Dudek is among the oldest figure skaters to make her Olympic debut in the last century, doing so at the Milan Cortina Games at 42 years old.Related video above: 44-year-old snowboarder Nick Baumgartner embraces experience and humor on his way to fifth Olympic GamesIt’s a dream that’s been many years in the making, but particularly over the last decade.Stellato-Dudek is competing in the pairs event with partner Maxime Deschamps for Canada’s Olympic team. They had a strong short program on Sunday until Stellato-Dudek’s fluke fall at the end of their reverse lasso lift. They scored just 66.04.”That has never happened before. It was the first time,” Stellato-Dudek said. “I guess it cost us around 10 points.”As of the end of the short programs for pairs, they sit in 14th place. They’re among the 16 teams that qualified for the free skate.”I feel like I’m going 100 miles per hour going down the highway,” Stellato said of her first Olympic experience to Olympics.com. “I hope that people learn to never limit themselves. The only limits are the ones that you put on yourself.”It’s far from her only recent setback. The former world champion and Dechamps weren’t even sure they would compete at these Olympics when she sustained a head injury in a recent practice fall. A remarkable comebackStellato-Dudek was a top singles skater for the U.S. in the late 1990s, but several injuries led her to retire from competition in 2001.Her comeback from retirement came more than a decade later in 2016, specifically seeking out the dream to compete on Olympic ice.Her return was prompted by a question she answered at a work retreat as an aesthetician. The question? “What would you do if you knew you couldn’t fail?”Her answer surprised even her.”I would win an Olympic gold medal.”That instance prompted her to lace up her skates and return to the ice. She began skating pairs at 34 years old with Nathan Bartholomay.She and Bartholomay medaled at the U.S. Championships, but he decided to retire due to nagging injuries.Her comeback success gained steam after she began skating with her current pairs partner, French-Canadian Maxime Deschamps. She continued to see through her Olympic dream, quitting her job and moving to Montreal to do so.The pair won the world title in 2024. With that win, Stellato-Dudek became the oldest woman to win a world title in any figure skating discipline.Stellato-Dudek retained Canadian citizenship in 2024.Olympic dream realizedHer arrival at the Milan Cortina Games has been surreal for the veteran skater. “Since we arrived here and we saw the Olympic rings, like, we’ve taken a bunch of photographs, and I’ve cried before every one, so I’ve looked hideous in every picture I’ve taken,” she told the Associated Press. “When I set out on this journey in 2016, not one person told me I would make it to the Olympics, and I thought I would be there at – god, 34, and I’m 42.”So to know me is to know that I wasn’t going to go down without a fight.”But beyond anything else, her hope is to spark a trend among skaters who are older.It’s something that Hearst Television’s Get the Facts Data team has seen across all winter Olympians, too.During the past 40 years, the average age of winter Olympic medalists has steadily risen from 24 to 28 by the 2022 Games. The increase is even more pronounced among women, whose average age climbed from 23 to 28.Stellato-Dudek is among those paving the way for older Olympians.”I’m always really happy to represent for the millennials and the women in their 40s,” she told NBC Olympics. “You know, we’re constantly underestimated, and we’re constantly told no, and there’s not one person that told me that I could achieve this when I started.”She called her Olympic debut “a long time coming.””I always hope in the future that someone breaks my record,” she told Olympics.com. “That’s something that I would love to see.”The Associated Press contributed to this report.
A seasoned U.S.-born figure skater is making history: Deanna Stellato-Dudek is among the oldest figure skaters to make her Olympic debut in the last century, doing so at the Milan Cortina Games at 42 years old.
Related video above: 44-year-old snowboarder Nick Baumgartner embraces experience and humor on his way to fifth Olympic Games
It’s a dream that’s been many years in the making, but particularly over the last decade.
Stellato-Dudek is competing in the pairs event with partner Maxime Deschamps for Canada’s Olympic team.
They had a strong short program on Sunday until Stellato-Dudek’s fluke fall at the end of their reverse lasso lift. They scored just 66.04.
“That has never happened before. It was the first time,” Stellato-Dudek said. “I guess it cost us around 10 points.”
As of the end of the short programs for pairs, they sit in 14th place. They’re among the 16 teams that qualified for the free skate.
“I feel like I’m going 100 miles per hour going down the highway,” Stellato said of her first Olympic experience to Olympics.com. “I hope that people learn to never limit themselves. The only limits are the ones that you put on yourself.”
It’s far from her only recent setback. The former world champion and Dechamps weren’t even sure they would compete at these Olympics when she sustained a head injury in a recent practice fall.
A remarkable comeback
Stellato-Dudek was a top singles skater for the U.S. in the late 1990s, but several injuries led her to retire from competition in 2001.
Her comeback from retirement came more than a decade later in 2016, specifically seeking out the dream to compete on Olympic ice.
Her return was prompted by a question she answered at a work retreat as an aesthetician. The question? “What would you do if you knew you couldn’t fail?”
Her answer surprised even her.
“I would win an Olympic gold medal.”
That instance prompted her to lace up her skates and return to the ice. She began skating pairs at 34 years old with Nathan Bartholomay.
She and Bartholomay medaled at the U.S. Championships, but he decided to retire due to nagging injuries.
Her comeback success gained steam after she began skating with her current pairs partner, French-Canadian Maxime Deschamps. She continued to see through her Olympic dream, quitting her job and moving to Montreal to do so.
The pair won the world title in 2024. With that win, Stellato-Dudek became the oldest woman to win a world title in any figure skating discipline.
Stellato-Dudek retained Canadian citizenship in 2024.
Olympic dream realized
Her arrival at the Milan Cortina Games has been surreal for the veteran skater.
“Since we arrived here and we saw the Olympic rings, like, we’ve taken a bunch of photographs, and I’ve cried before every one, so I’ve looked hideous in every picture I’ve taken,” she told the Associated Press. “When I set out on this journey in 2016, not one person told me I would make it to the Olympics, and I thought I would be there at – god, 34, and I’m 42.
“So to know me is to know that I wasn’t going to go down without a fight.”
But beyond anything else, her hope is to spark a trend among skaters who are older.
It’s something that Hearst Television’s Get the Facts Data team has seen across all winter Olympians, too.
During the past 40 years, the average age of winter Olympic medalists has steadily risen from 24 to 28 by the 2022 Games. The increase is even more pronounced among women, whose average age climbed from 23 to 28.
Stellato-Dudek is among those paving the way for older Olympians.
“I’m always really happy to represent for the millennials and the women in their 40s,” she told NBC Olympics. “You know, we’re constantly underestimated, and we’re constantly told no, and there’s not one person that told me that I could achieve this when I started.”
She called her Olympic debut “a long time coming.”
“I always hope in the future that someone breaks my record,” she told Olympics.com. “That’s something that I would love to see.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.