As California has its sights set to host the 2028 Olympic Games in its biggest city, Los Angeles, the state is currently sending more athletes to Beijing 2022 than any other state in the United States. It has been 14 years since China last hosted the Olympic Games, with Beijing being the first city to host both the Summer and Winter Games. This will be the second time in a row NHL players will not be given a break to play in the Winter Olympics.
The projected ad revenue from the 2022 Winter Games is set to be around $600 million, which is 10% less than from the 2018 Winter Games. The amount should benefit the 30 members of the 224-strong US squad for the Winter Olympics, who hail from California. That number includes defending women’s snowboard halfpipe champion Chloe Kim, who counts Los Angeles as her hometown, as well as reigning men’s Olympic snowboard halfpipe champion Shaun White, who calls Carlsbad his home. Men’s singles figure skating champion Nathan Chen, back-back women’s Olympic snowboard slopestyle champion Jamie Anderson and ascending women’s moguls star Kai Owens are other high-profile Californians in the U.S. Olympic party.
California’s total of 30 athletes also includes Kaillie Humphries, a two-time Olympic bobsled champion who has switched allegiance from Canada to the U.S. and now also lives in Carlsbad, as well as Alpine skier Alix Wilkinson, who was a late call-up following Breezy Johnson’s injury.
Although much of California has a climate which is not conducive to playing winter sports, it also contains mountains and is a former Winter Olympics host. The 1960 Winter Olympics were held in California at Squaw Valley, which has since been renamed Palisades Tahoe. Los Angeles has twice before hosted the Olympics, in 1932 and 1980, and California is the only US state to have staged both Summer and Winter Games. Colorado is second on the state leaderboard, with 24 athletes in the U.S. squad.
As for hometown Olympians, Hailey Langland, who at one point hailed from Temecula, is back after making her first Olympic appearance at the age of 17, representing the United States at the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang.
Langland, who first got on the map winning gold in the Big Air event at the Winter X Games in 2017, is also renowned for being the first female snowboarder to land a double cork in X Games history. She was born and raised in San Clemente before moving to Temecula, and has since moved back to her hometown.
Former gold medalist Cayla Barnes, who was raised just down the 15 freeway in Eastvale, is back four years later as a member of the current 23-player U.S. women’s Olympic hockey team. The neighbor to the north, Barnes, is among 15 returning players on the roster for the Beijing Games with previous Olympic experience.
The complete list of California Olympians is:
Alpine Skiing – Bryce Bennett, Tahoe City
Alpine Skiing – Keely Cashman, Strawberry
Alpine Skiing – Travis Ganong, Tahoe City
Alpine Skiing – AJ Hurt, Carnelian Bay
Alpine Skiing – Maureen Lebel, Truckee
Alpine Skiing – Joanne Reid, Palo Alto
Bobsled – Kaillie Humphries, Carlsbad
Bobsled – Carlo Valdes, Newport Beach
Cross-Country Skiing – Hannah Halvorsen, Truckee
Cross-Country Skiing – James Clinton Schoonmaker, Tahoe City
Figure Skating – Mariah Bell, Irvine
Figure Skating – Nathan Chen, Irvine
Figure Skating – Karen Chen, Fremont
Figure Skating – Madison Chock, Redondo Beach
Figure Skating – Alysa Liu, Richmond
Figure Skating – Vincent Zhou, Palo Alto
Freestyle/Free ski – Kai Owens, Avon
Freestyle/Free ski – Brita Sigourney, Carmel
Freestyle/Free ski – Tyler Wallasch, Mammoth Lakes
Ice Hockey, Men – Brendan Brisson, Manhattan Beach
Ice Hockey, Women – Cayla Barnes, Corona
Snowboarding – Jamie Anderson, South Lake Tahoe
Snowboarding – Robert Burns, Mount Shasta
Snowboarding – Dusty Henricksen, Mammoth Lakes
Snowboarding – Chloe Kim, Los Angeles
Snowboarding – Hailey Langland, San Clemente
Snowboarding – Maddie Mastro, Wrightwood
Snowboarding – Tessa Maud, Carlsbad
Snowboarding – Shaun White, Carlsbad
The 2022 Winter Olympics officially began with the Opening Ceremony Friday, Feb. 4, and will run through Sunday, Feb. 20, in Beijing, China. However, the competition did start with early rounds of curling Wednesday, Feb. 2, two days before the Opening Ceremony.
JP Raineri can be reached by email at sports@reedermedia.com.
