Florida Has Winter Olympians Competing In Speedskating, Bobsled And Ice Hockey

FLORIDA — The 2022 Winter Olympics are well underway in Beijing, China, with 224 athletes from Team USA hoping to bring home the gold. That number also includes nearly a dozen Florida natives who look to score a major victory for the country and make the Sunshine State proud.

So how does Florida's representation in the Winter Olympics stack up against other states? As it probably comes as no surprise, given the state's overall warmer climate, winter sports aren't typically quite as popular with Floridians as they are with their neighbors in colder states.

According to NBC Sports, California, Colorado, Minnesota, Utah, Illinois and Wisconsin are the top states with athletes competing for Team USA. These states have anywhere from 12 to 29 athletes competing. Florida's representation falls somewhere in the middle — which still isn't too shabby.

Meanwhile, other states, like North Carolina and Alabama, have zero athlete representation.

For residents tuned into the games, Florida Olympians in speedskating, men's ice hockey and bobsled are ones to keep an eye out for:

Brittany Bowe — Speedskater (Hometown: Ocala, FL)

A native of Ocala, Brittany Bowe, 33, is a 3-time Olympian representing Team USA in speedskating. A 2018 Olympic bronze medalist, she helped lead Team USA into the stadium at the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics on Friday. [READ STORY HERE] According to her website, not only does she excel on the ice but the basketball court, too, which back in the day landed her a Division I basketball scholarship at Florida Atlantic University. A five-time speedskating world champion, Bowe said she's achieved almost everything she's set her mind to and continues on her quest for Olympic gold.

Erin Jackson — Speedskater (Hometown: Ocala, FL)

Hailing from Ocala, Erin Jackson, 29, is breaking bearers. According to Team USA, she became the first Black American woman named to an Olympic long track team during the 2018 Winter Games in PyeongChang. She is also the world’s top-ranked skater at 500 meters this season and has won four of the eight world cups at the distance.

Joey Mantia — Speedskater (Hometown: Ocala, FL)

Just like fellow athletes Bowe and Jackson, 35-year-old Joey Mantia is from Ocala. According to Team USA, he came into the trials ranked No. 1 in the 1,500-meter, winning the event and breaking a track record set by Olympic bronze medalist Chad Hendrick. A three-time world champion, he just missed the podium in the 1,000, placing fourth during the 2018 Winter Games in PyeongChang.

Mia Kilburg-Manganello — Speedskater (Hometown: Crestview, FL)

In addition to being a speedskater, Mia Manganello Kilburg, 32, of Crestview is the 2018 Olympic bronze medalist in the women's team pursuit category. According to her website, it was the first medal to be won by the U.S. speedskating team since 2010 and the first medal to be won by the U.S. women's speedskating since 2002. She's also a professional cyclist.

Frank Del Duca — Bobsledder (Hometown: Fort Lauderdale, FL)

Born in Ft. Lauderdale, 30-year-old Frank Del Duca is a 2014 graduate of the University of Maine. He was a walk-on for the NCAA Division 1 track team and was team captain by his senior year, according to Team USA. Interested in bobsledding, he tried out and made the national team as a push athlete for the 2015-2016 season. After missing the 2018 Olympic Team, Del Duca switched to the front of the sled. As a pilot, he worked his way up the North American Cup standings. He is also a member of the U.S. Army’s World Class Athlete Program.

Nathan Smith — Men’s Ice Hockey (Hometown: Hudson, FL)

Born in Hudson, Nathan Smith, 23, attended Minnesota State University where he was named a three-time Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA) Rookie of the Week. He also previously skated for the Tampa Scorpions youth team and was selected in the third round (91st overall) by the Winnipeg Jets in the 2018 NHL Draft, according to USA Hockey.

Josh Williamson — Bobsledder (Hometown: Lake Mary, FL)

Josh Williamson, 25, considers Lake Mary home. According to Team USA, when he was in high school in Florida, he earned a scholarship to play NCAA Division 1 lacrosse at Mercer University in Macon, Georgia. Injuries his freshman year, however, took away that dream, so he transferred to Florida State University and gave up NCAA competition. In early Jan. 2022, Williamson won another world cup bronze in fellow Olympian, Hunter Church’s four-man sled. This is his first time competing in the Olympics.

How To Watch The Olympics

NBCUniversal is the main broadcast partner and will offer 2022 Beijing Olympics programming across its cable, broadcast and digital platforms, including NBC, USA, CNBC and the Olympic Channel. People with basic cable packages that include access to NBC can also watch livestream coverage with the NBC Sports app.

Here are some other options:

• SlingTV’s Blue Plan includes access to channels broadcasting live Olympic coverage.
• Sling is offering a free trial of its Blue Plan, which includes access to channels broadcasting live Olympics coverage.
• fuboTV offers Olympic livestreams;
• Hulu + Live TV gives you access on TVs, tablets, laptops and other devices.
• NBCUniversal’s streaming service, Peacock, offers livestreaming via laptops, smartphones and smart TVs.