At the opening ceremony in Milano-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, the athletes on the Ireland Olympic Team attracted some attention when they gave a big nod to Irish culture by donning traditional Aran sweaters which were made in Westport, Ireland. The selection of the sweater was a deliberate choice, not to mention being a nice tribute to Irish maritime heritage. The sweater features symbolic stitch patterns traditionally believed to bring luck and safety to the wearer which could come in handy when speeding down the side of a mountain at 80 mph. We think their choice of sweater makes sense. As luck would have it, we carry them at The Celtic Rose. Click here to get their look.
There are only four athletes on the entire squad. But that tracks - Ireland has always been small but mighty. All team members compete in various skiing events. The team includes alpine skiers Cormac Comerford and Anabelle Zurbay, cross-country skier Thomas Maloney Westgård, and freestyle skier Ben Lynch.
Now let's get to the craic. We thought you might be interested in learning a wee bit more about the team. Let’s just say, this Irish saying seems fitting:
"I'm Irish, not because I was born in Ireland, but because Ireland was born in me."
You see only two of the four-member team representing Ireland at the Olympics actually were born in or live in Ireland.
“Is that so?” you say. So who are they and where do they come from?
Let’s start with the two athletes from Ireland. Cormac Comerford hails from Glenageary, Dublin, where he began skiing at the Ski Club of Ireland in Kilternan. Ben Lynch is a native of Dublin, Ireland, where he developed his freestyle skiing skills.
The other two athletes made the team thanks to their maternal relatives and well uh their talents too.
Anabelle Zurbay is just 17 years old, she is the youngest-ever Irish Winter Olympian and well she is an American originally from Minnesota and now based in Vail, Colorado. She is competing in slalom and giant slalom, representing her Irish roots through her maternal grandmother from Rosemount, County Westmeath.
This is the third Olympics for Thomas Maloney Westgård who grew up on the tiny Norwegian island of Leka, which has just 600 residents. He represents Ireland in the Winter Olympics thanks to his mother, Celia Maloney, who is originally from Dunmore, County Galway. She moved to Norway 35 years ago after meeting her Norwegian husband during a sun holiday in the Canary Islands.
Like the women in their families, the team at The Celtic Rose will be rooting for Team Ireland and Team USA. Afterall, we too have have Irish roots and are American grown. (We also sell a tee shirt that says that.)
If you would like to watch Team Ireland complete, here’s a link to Team Ireland’s schedule. https://www.olympics.com/en/milano-cortina-2026/schedule/irl
Slainte!