Anyone hoping to prove that talent runs in the family need not look any further than these sets of Team USA siblings preparing to compete at the Olympic Winter Games PyeongChang 2018.
Whether making their debuts or looking to add to the multiple medals they already possess, these brothers and sisters show that their sports are in their blood. With just seven days to go before the Opening Ceremony in South Korea, here’s a look at the seven sets of siblings who are part of Team USA:
1. Erik and Sadie Bjornsen (cross-country skiing): Four years ago the Bjornsens became the first set of siblings to make the same Olympic team in cross-country skiing. Sadie now has a bronze medal from the 2017 world championships and is ranked seventh in the world cup standings, having her best season yet, while Erik remains among the best U.S. men in the sport as they return for a second act in PyeongChang.
2. Bryan and Taylor Fletcher (Nordic combined): Also back competing together for the second time at the Winter Games are the Fletcher brothers, who are equal parts competitors and friends. Bryan, a childhood cancer survivor, won the U.S. Olympic Team Trials to qualify for his second Games while younger brother Taylor, who finished fourth in the trials, earned a Continental Cup podium spot on the last day of qualifying to make his third Olympic team.
3. Becca and Matt Hamilton (curling): These siblings won’t be the first to compete for the U.S. in curling at the Olympics, but they will be the first to compete as a team in mixed doubles curling as the event makes its debut in 2018. They’ll begin the day before the Opening Ceremony with mixed doubles, going for medal No. 1, and afterward Matt will join the men’s curling team and Becca will join the women’s, where they’ll hope to each earn medal No. 2.
4. Logan and Reese Hanneman (cross-country skiing): The brothers from Alaska have been mainstays in American sprint racing, with Reese winning his third sprint title at the national championships in January after Logan, who took the national title in the freestyle sprint in 2017, won the qualifying. Both are making their Olympic debuts.
5. Jocelyne Lamoureux-Davidson and Monique Lamoureux-Morando (ice hockey): They were the first set of twins to play Olympic hockey back in 2010, and now the siblings are ready to face off for the third time as part of Team USA. Both forwards, they’ve combined for 24 points and won silver medals at each of the past two Games. Now they’re looking to help the U.S. claim the gold medal for the first time since 1998, when women’s hockey was first introduced at the Games.
6. Caitlin and Scott Patterson (cross-country skiing): Joining the Hannemans and Bjornsens, both Pattersons recently had strong showings at the national championships, with Caitlin claiming the women’s 10-kilometer freestyle title and Scott winning the men’s 15K an hour later. Both now have three national championships, are making their Olympic debuts and are part of three sibling duos from Alaska competing in cross-country for the U.S.
7. Maia and Alex Shibutani (ice dance): The 2014 Olympians have been mainstays on the podium since making their senior debut in 2010, with eight straight podiums at nationals (including two wins), three world championship medals total, 17 grand prix medals and four Four Continents medals. They’re now expected to be strong contenders to add ‘Olympic medalists’ to their already-impressive resumes.
Karen Price is a reporter from Pittsburgh who has covered Olympic sports for various publications. She is a freelance contributor to TeamUSA.org on behalf of Red Line Editorial, Inc.
