Jessie Diggins, the most decorated American cross-country skier in history, just announced that the 2025–2026 season would be her last. The announcement came as she was set to begin her final World Cup season, which will conclude in March 2026 at the Stifel Lake Placid Finals in New York.
FALUN, SWEDEN – FEBRUARY 16: Jessie Diggins of Usa celebrates the first place after the 20Km Mass Start Free of the FIS World Cup Cross-Country Falun on February 16, 2025 in Falun, Sweden. (Photo by Federico Modica/NordicFocus/Getty Images)
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I was lucky enough to attend a press conference on November 20th with Jessie and ask her questions, along with other members of the media.
Remembered For Her Joy Of The Sport
ZHANGJIAKOU, CHINA – FEBRUARY 08: Bronze medallist, Jessie Diggins of Team United States celebrates with a flag during the Women’s Cross-Country Sprint Free Final flower ceremony on Day 4 of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games at The National Cross-Country Skiing Centre on February 08, 2022 in Zhangjiakou, China. (Photo by Matthias Hangst/Getty Images)
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Jessie Diggins will be remembered not only for her athletic success, but also for her “emotions-on-her-sleeve” smile and trademark face glitter. For 15 years, the glitter has been a part of the uniform—a symbol of the joy and heart she has brought to the punishing world of cross-country ski racing.
Athletic Highlights
She will be remembered for the Team Sprint gold medal with Kikkan Randall in PyeongChang in 2018 and the gritty silver in Beijing in 2022. Jessie Diggins is the most decorated American cross-country skier in history, with 29 individual World Cup victories, 79 World Cup podiums, and three Overall Crystal Globe titles in 2021, 2024, and 2025. She is the only non-European woman to have won the Overall FIS Crystal Globe.
VAL DI FIEMME, ITALY – JANUARY 5: Jessie Diggins of USA celebrates on the podium of the Final Climb of the FIS World Cup Cross-Country Val di Fiemme on January 5, 2025 in Val di Fiemme, Italy. (Photo by Federico Modica/NordicFocus/Getty Images)
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PyeongChang 2018
Jessie Diggins won the gold medal in the women’s team sprint freestyle event with her teammate Kikkan Randall. The event is a 6 x 1.25 km sprint, with the two teammates alternating legs. Throughout the race, Diggins and Randall matched the strong pace set by European powerhouses like Norway and Sweden. On the final lap, Diggins was chasing gold medalists Stina Nilsson of Sweden and Maiken Caspersen Falla of Norway.
PYEONGCHANG-GUN, SOUTH KOREA – FEBRUARY 21: Jessica Diggins of the United States (14-2) stretches across the finish line to win gold ahead of Stina Nilsson of Sweden (12-2) during the Cross Country Ladies’ Team Sprint Free Final on day 12 of the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympic Games at Alpensia Cross-Country Centre on February 21, 2018 in Pyeongchang-gun, South Korea. (Photo by Matthias Hangst/Getty Images)
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With the crowd roaring, the three women would enter the Olympic stadium with Diggins in third place right behind Falla and Caspersen. Jessie would first pass Falla.
Then, with Nilsson taking the inside lane, Diggins would choose the outside lane in a final push for the finish line. In the last few strides, Diggins would lunge and throw her ski forward just across the line, beating Nilsson by a mere 0.19 seconds.
PYEONGCHANG-GUN, SOUTH KOREA – FEBRUARY 21: Jessica Diggins of the United States reacts as she wins gold during the Cross Country Ladies’ Team Sprint Free Final on day 12 of the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympic Games at Alpensia Cross-Country Centre on February 21, 2018 in Pyeongchang-gun, South Korea. (Photo by Lars Baron/Getty Images)
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After crossing the finish line, Diggins would collapse in the snow, as Randall tackled her. Their win marked the first cross-country skiing medal for the U.S. since 1976 and the first-ever gold.
PYEONGCHANG-GUN, SOUTH KOREA – FEBRUARY 22: Gold medalists Kikkan Randall and Jessica Diggins of the United States celebrate during the medal ceremony for Cross-Country Skiing – Ladies’ Team Sprint Free on day 13 of the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympic Games at Medal Plaza on February 22, 2018 in Pyeongchang-gun, South Korea. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)
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Beijing 2022
Jessie Diggins won a silver medal in the women’s 30-kilometer mass start freestyle race at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, a historic and grueling performance that came just a day after she was battling food poisoning. Her gutsy finish made her the first non-European woman to medal in the event and cemented her status as the most decorated U.S. cross-country skier in Olympic history.
ZHANGJIAKOU, CHINA – FEBRUARY 08: Bronze medallist, Jessie Diggins of Team United States stands on the podium during the Women’s Cross-Country Sprint Free Final flower ceremony on Day 4 of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games at The National Cross-Country Skiing Centre on February 08, 2022 in Zhangjiakou, China. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
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The race was held in cold, windy conditions on the final day of the Beijing Games. Diggins, who had already won a bronze medal in the individual sprint earlier in the Games, was recovering from a debilitating bout of food poisoning that had left her bedridden the day before. Norway’s Therese Johaug took control of the race early, eventually winning gold by a large margin. Diggins skied a smart, tactical race, consistently holding her position and fending off the chase group for silver, finishing over a minute ahead of the bronze medalist. The performance matched the best-ever individual Olympic finish by an American cross-country skier, a record previously held by Bill Koch since 1976.
ZHANGJIAKOU, CHINA – FEBRUARY 20: Jessie Diggins of Team United States receives medical attention from members of Team United States after winning silver during the Women’s Cross-Country Skiing 30k Mass Start Free on Day 16 of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics at The National Cross-Country Skiing Centre on February 20, 2022 in Zhangjiakou, China. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
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Helping Others
Diggins will continue to use her platform to reduce the stigma around mental illness and encourage others to seek help. In her 2020 memoir, Brave Enough, Diggins details her struggle and recovery with an eating disorder. As an ambassador and spokesperson for the Emily Program, an eating disorder treatment center where she was treated as a teenager, Diggins shares her personal recovery story. Following a relapse with her eating disorder in 2023, she continued to speak publicly about the experience, emphasizing that recovery is not a linear process.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – OCTOBER 26: Jessie Diggins attends the U.S. Ski & Snowboard Gold Medal Gala at Ziegfeld Theater on October 26, 2023 in New York City. (Photo by Michael Loccisano/Getty Images)
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The Next Chapter
Diggins says she will run 100-mile races just for the fun of it, work in her garden, and spend more time with her husband and family. She will continue to travel and speak as an advocate for athletes and mental health, as well as gender equality in sports and climate change and its effects on winter sports.
PYEONGCHANG-GUN, SOUTH KOREA – FEBRUARY 25: Flag bearer Jessica Diggins of the United States walks in the Parade of Athletes during the Closing Ceremony of the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympic Games at PyeongChang Olympic Stadium on February 25, 2018 in Pyeongchang-gun, South Korea. (Photo by Andreas Rentz/Getty Images)
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I will be cheering hard for Diggins in Milan-Cortina (and beyond) in her journey.
Go Jessie go!
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/timgenske/2025/11/22/the-milano-cortina-2026-olympic-games-will-be-jessie-digginss-last/
