Winter Olympics 2026: Amber Glenn falls foul of cruel 50-year-old rule as 'invalid element' likely to cost medal at Milano Cortina Games
Updated 18/02/2026 at 13:01 GMT
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American figure skater Amber Glenn seemed to have gone through her third routine of the short program unscathed but fell foul to a brutal 50-year-old rule which saw a minor error cost her badly. The 26-year-old failed to complete a triple jump, only completing a double jump. That cost her dearly, meaning she now sits 13th after the short program and needs a miracle to land on the podium.
'Oh Amber!' - Watch the mistake that cost Glenn dearly - and moved her to tears
Video credit: TNT Sports
American figure skater Amber Glenn suffered as a result of a cruel 50-year-old rule that rendered the technical element of her routine "invalid" and sees her needing a miracle to win a medal at the 2026 Winter Olympic Games at Milano Cortina.
Three-time US champion Glenn was considered a contender for a medal in the ladies' singles free skate competition and her routine appeared to be going to plan.
But then she committed a tiny but crucial error, which cost her dearly and saw her automatically awarded zero points for the technical element, which proved catastrophic, as she slipped to 13th overall.
Glenn's error was likely not even spotted by those not overly familiar with the sport, but unfortunately for the 26-year-old, it was noticed by the judges.
In women's figure skating at the Winter Olympics, the short program requires a double or triple axel, a triple jump, a jump combination, flying spin, spin combination, step sequence and a layback/sideways leaning spit or sit.
Glenn had managed to successfully complete a triple jump combination and the best triple axel of her career. It seemed as though she was destined to put through a routine capable of getting herself on top of the podium.
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Amber Glenn's routine was almost faultless - with one error almost certainly costing her a medal.
Image credit: Getty Images
But when it came to the triple jump, she made a grave, and ultimately very costly, error.
Glenn failed to complete a third loop, with a mistimed takeoff seeing her complete only two revolutions.
That, of course, is considered a double jump and not a triple, which meant she failed in a technical element.
The ISU Special Regulations and Technical Rules state that a triple jump must be completed. If a double is performed, the judges will rule it as "not according to requirements".
That ruling has been in place for more than 50 years and means that Glenn had failed to meet the required short program technical standards, which saw that element of her score marked as an "invalid element" and the skill given "no value".
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Glenn understandably appeared devastated at her error, which will almost certainly cost her any sort of chance of a medal.
She took to social media to say: "The world has ended for me many times and yet tomorrow still comes."
Glenn was not the only skater who came to the same unfortunate demise, with Canadian Madeline Schizas committing the exact same error of a double loop rather than a triple in the short program event.
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Snoop Dogg, Halle Bailey, Ilia Malinin LOVED Liu's 'awesome' routine
Video credit: TNT Sports
That saw her miss the qualification mark by the margin of just 0.15 points, whereas at the very least, Glenn will have the opportunity to attempt her free skate routine.
Schizas said upon her elimination: "I received zero points for one element, which is really unfortunate.
"And today, that was the difference between qualifying and not qualifying. So obviously, that’s very tough. But I guess that’s part of life."
Glenn will return to complete her free skating routine on Thursday.
Japanese duo Ami Nakai and Kaori Sakamoto occupy the top two spots, with Glenn's American team-mate Alysa Liu currently sitting in third place.
Watch every event of Milano Cortina 2026 live on discovery+. Available across all subscription plans, starting at £3.99.
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