2 Inland Empire Olympic Athletes Are Headed For Milan, 2026

INLAND EMPIRE, CA — Two Inland Empire athletes will represent the IE in Italy this year. Eastvale’s Cayla Barnes and Wrightwood's Maddie Maestro are among the 232 Team USA athletes qualified for the 2026 Milano Cortina Olympic Winter Games.

The U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Committee announced Team USA members on Monday. The roster comprises 117 men and 115 women, including 98 returning Olympians and 18 Olympic champions. This is Barnes’s third visit to the Olympics to represent the USA.

“Today we proudly introduce the 2026 U.S. Olympic Team – a group of extraordinary athletes whose commitment, perseverance and spirit reflect the very best of Team USA,” CEO Sarah Hirshland, the CEO of the Olympic and Paralympic Committee, said in a news release.

“While we honor their individual excellence and the undeniable strength of the full team, we also recognize that no athlete reaches this moment without the support of a broad community that supported and believed in them, both on and off the field of play,” Hirshland said.

Cayla Barnes, a two-time Olympian — 2018 and 2022 — from Eastvale, will be competing in ice hockey, according to her Olympic athlete bio. She earned two medals so far in her Olympic journey: a gold from the 2018 Olympic Games in Pyeongchang and a silver from the 2022 Olympic Games in Beijing.

"Professionally, Barnes plays in the PWHL for the Seattle Torrent alongside Team USA teammates Hilary Knight and Alex Carpenter, who also joined the Torrent for their inaugural season," according to her biography. "Off the ice, Barnes enjoys hiking, paddle boarding, swimming and tubing."

Maddie Mastro, also a two-time Olympian from the 2018 and 2022 games, hails from Wrightwood. She is a snowboarder who specializes in the half pipe, according to her biography. At the Beijing games, she finished 13th after an injury.

"Maddie Mastro began skiing at the age of two and later transitioned to snowboarding around five or six when her parents promised her a pink snowboard. "She's the daughter of Christopher and Eileen Mastro and has one brother, Cameron," her biography says. She credits her older brother with "shaping her into the person and rider she is today."

Of the Olympians returning to Team USA’s line-up, seven will make a fifth appearance at the Games in Italy, which take place Feb. 6-22. The Paralympic Games are scheduled for March 6-15.

Three-time Olympic medalist Lindsey Vonn joins ice hockey star Hilary Knight, figure skater Evan Bates, snowboarders Nick Baumgartner and Faye Guilini, and bobsleigh Olympic medalists Humphries and Elena Meyers Taylor, as part of the select group.

Ten athletes will be participating for a fourth time, while 22 are back for a third appearance.

Although the opening ceremony isn’t until Feb. 6, competition begins on Feb. 4 with curling. Here are other key dates:

• Feb. 7: First gold medal events.
• Feb. 8: Gold medal, women’s Alpine skiing downhill.
• Feb. 13: Gold medal, men’s figure skating.
• Feb. 18: Gold medal, women’s Alpine skiing slalom.
• Feb. 19: Gold medal, women’s figure skating. Gold medal game, women’s ice hockey. First gold medals in ski mountaineering, a new Olympic sport.
• Feb. 22: Gold medal game, men’s ice hockey. Closing ceremony.