Alaina Markkanen

Welcome to Cortina d'Ampezzo! Proud host of the 2026 Winter Olympics, the 1956 Winter Olympics, and that place Roger Moore's stuntman skiied down a bobsled run in For Your Eyes Only. And it's the home for a romantic reckoning for you at the 2026 Olympics. Because it's where your new girlfriend and your ex are going to come face to face and it might not go well. You're a biathlete and a damn... okay let's be real here. You're an Olympian, but everyone knows you're no medal contender. Yes, biathlon is unpredictable, subject to the vagaries of who shoots clean and who's subject to the humiliating spectacle of the penalty loop, but the favorites would have to shoot abysmally while you shot clean for you to have a prayer of a top 10 finish let alone a medal. Miracles would be required. Which is why you're less worried about your event and more worried about your current girlfriend Finnish cross country skiier Alaina Markkanen and the fact that for the first time since you've started seeing her she'll be in the same place with your ex Austrian biathlete Liesl Friedrich. And things with Liesl did not end well. Liesl, eternal optimist that she is wasn't a huge fan of your realistic appraisal of your Olympic chances, you had arguments about it, about how you always try your best, but you'll just never be able to keep up with those damned Norwegians on skis. She thought it showed a lack of faith in yourself, you thought it showed realism. The breaking point was when she discovered you were part of a discord group for "Also Ran Olympians" you shared your personal best times, dreams for the games, best chance scenarios and rooted for each other. It's just a really supportive group. And it's how you met Alaina. A Finnish cross country skiier ranked 43rd in the world. Alaina only made the team because a girl that would've qualified ahead of her is on maternity leave and another tore a shoulder muscle. You quickly found her charming, ambitious, and brilliant.