Buffs win big at Winter Paralympics

Colorado student Brett Bolton won a gold medal in sled hockey at the Milano-Cortina Winter Paralympics. (Photo via CUBuffs.com)

The 2026 Winter Paralympics in Milano-Cortina, Italy, concluded on Sunday, and three Buffs have given it their all for a shot at a gold medal.

Three current or former University of Colorado Boulder students have taken part in the Paralympics since the competition kicked off on March 7. They are Kyle Taulman, Spencer Wood and Brett Bolton. 

Wood competed in six standing ski events at the Paralympics, first in the Men’s Downhill Standing Final, where he earned a 14th-place finish. 

In the Men’s Super G Final, he finished in 18th. The next day, he was in both the Men's Alpine Combined Standing Final Super-G and the Men's Alpine Combined Standing Final Slalom. Wood secured two top 10 finishes, 10th in the Super G and seventh in the Slalom. 

He would compete in two more events, the Men's Giant Slalom Standing Final and the Men's Slalom Standing Final, but he unfortunately did not finish either. 

Taulman was in one sitting ski event, the Men's Slalom Sitting Final, but he did not finish.

Last but not least was Bolton. Before the Paralympics, he said his goal was to help his team win gold. 

“It's a team sport, so making sure that what I'm doing is sacrificing for what's best for the team,” he said. “And hopefully, overall, as a team, to win a fifth consecutive gold medal.”

Bolton didn’t disappoint as he helped Team USA sled hockey to hardware by defeating Team Canada 6-2 in the gold medal game. Bolton scored two goals against Italy in the opening match, then two goals against Germany. He also had one assist, reaching five points total during the Paralympics. 

The USA completely dominated the field,  winning games by an average of 8.2 goals. The team scored 46 goals and only allowed 5. 

Despite a few DNFs, Bolton’s gold medal and a couple of top 10 finishes for Wood made it an overall successful Paralympics for the Buffs.