The highly anticipated women’s hockey tournament at the 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics has already faced its first disruption, as the opening game between Canada and Finland has been postponed due to a norovirus outbreak within the Finnish team. The illness, which began affecting players Tuesday night, has sidelined thirteen members of the Finnish squad, leaving the team with only ten available players. Officials from both nations,alongside the International Olympic committee and the International Ice Hockey Federation,jointly decided to postpone the game to february 12 to prioritize player health and ensure fair competition.
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The opening game of the women’s hockey tournament at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, between Canada and Finland, has been postponed due to a norovirus outbreak within the Finnish team.
The first signs of trouble emerged Tuesday night, when several Finnish players began to fall ill with the highly contagious gastrointestinal virus. By Wednesday, concerns escalated, prompting a call between officials from Finland, Canada, the International Olympic Committee, the International Ice Hockey Federation, and the Games organizers.
Despite the challenging circumstances, Canadian GM Gina Kingsbury confirmed that a forfeit was never discussed. “Forfeiting was never brought up,” Kingsbury told reporters Thursday night in Milan. “We felt it was a good option and a responsible decision for us to be able to postpone.” The game has been rescheduled for February 12 at 8:30 a.m. ET.
As of Thursday, thirteen members of the Finnish squad were either sick or in quarantine, leaving only ten players available to compete. This significantly impacts Finland, ranked third in the world, as they prepare for a demanding Olympic schedule.
Gina Kingsbury, general manager of Canada’s women’s Olympic hockey team, said Thursday that her team was asked if they were willing to postpone their first game after the Finnish team was hit with a norovirus outbreak. ‘Forfeiting was never brought up,’ she said of a conversation with officials, adding that delaying was in the spirit of the Games.
A joint statement released Thursday by the IOC, IIHF, and the organizing committee emphasized that the decision was made in consultation with medical professionals and prioritizes the health and safety of all participants. “While all stakeholders recognize the disappointment of not playing the game as originally scheduled, this was a responsible and necessary decision that reflects the spirit of the Olympic Games and the integrity of the competition.”
Kingsbury, a two-time Olympic gold medalist herself (2006, 2010), expressed sympathy for the Finnish team. “You work four years to come to an Olympic Games,” she said. “We know what it means to represent your country and to be in this incredible tournament. To fall sick and to have a group of athletes under the weather the way they are, we feel for them.”
Currently, the illness appears to be isolated to the Finnish women’s hockey team, with no Canadian players reporting symptoms as of Thursday evening.
Canada Opens Tournament Saturday
Canada will now begin its Olympic journey against Switzerland on Saturday at 3:10 p.m. ET. Following that, they face Czechia on Monday at 3:10 p.m. ET and rival United States on Tuesday at 2:10 p.m. ET, before concluding the preliminary round with the rescheduled game against Finland.
The quick turnaround to the quarterfinal round will be challenging, but Kingsbury assured reporters that the Canadians will have a day off between the Finland game and their first playoff matchup.
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The schedule change requires adjustments for the Canadian team, whose athletes’ time in Italy had been meticulously planned by the staff. Canada held a full practice Thursday evening at Rho Ice Hockey Arena to help players acclimate to the local time and familiarize themselves with the rink and transportation.
“One thing we know is that Games are always unpredictable,” Kingsbury said. “As a group, we’ve focused on being adaptable and making sure that we’ve got the right people in place that can make decisions quickly and change and re-adapt, and make sure that we’re putting ourselves in the best position to be successful.”
The Canadian team held a meeting Thursday afternoon to discuss the situation, and medical staff provided guidance on preventative measures, including frequent handwashing and avoiding touching their faces – familiar advice from the COVID-19 protocols of the previous Winter Olympics.
As of now, there are no plans for the Canadian team to relocate from the Olympic Village.
“I think we’re trusting that things will be handled to make sure that we’re safe,” Kingsbury added.
Past Disruptions
Canada has experience navigating disruptions at the Olympic Games. At the 2022 Beijing Olympics, their game against Russia was delayed by over an hour due to late COVID-19 test results from the Russian team. Both teams even started the game wearing masks, with the Russian women continuing to wear them for two periods.
Team Canada was set to face off against Finland on Thursday in the opening women’s hockey match for each team at the Milano-Cortina Winter Games. But the game has been postponed to Feb. 12 because 13 Finnish players are ill with norovirus or in isolation.
Finland’s head coach, Tero Lehterä, stated that it would have been unfair to ask his ten healthy players to compete in a full game, and also expressed concern about the potential for infecting Canadian opponents.
Lehterä, in his first year coaching the women’s team, previously coached men’s teams and played for the Finnish national team in the 1990s. Despite the setback, he remained optimistic. “It might become a strength. I got to think positive,” he said. “We might be stronger when we come out of this. You never know.”
Lehterä emphasized the importance of focusing on what the team *can* control. “Some things might happen, you never know what happens. And you only worry about the things that we can affect. And this is not something we can do anything about it. We have no say whether we play or not. It’s not up to us. When we’re told to show up, we show up. Whether it’s five, six, seven, 15 or 20 [players].”
Finnish defender Jenni Hiirikoski, making her fifth Olympic appearance, said the team is supporting each other through this difficult time.
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“It’s not nice, definitely. But we try to focus one day at a time,” the 38-year-old said. “The big thing has been how we tolerate different things. I think we try to help each other, whatever it is, and how it goes. So it’s just stay calm and focused.”
Finland, alongside Czechia, entered the tournament as medal contenders, looking to challenge the dominance of the United States and defending Olympic champion Canada. The Finns won bronze at the 2022 Olympics and have finished third in the last two World Championships.
They will now open their tournament on Saturday against the U.S.
