Kelly Curtis slid headfirst straight into her second Olympics.<\/p>\n
The skeleton athlete from Princeton, NJ made her Olympic debut in 2022. <\/p>\n
And now, she’s representing Team USA in the 2026 Milan Cortina Games.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhenever you put on Team USA you are representing something that is bigger than yourself,\u201d Curtis said.<\/p>\n
On Saturday, Curtis finished in 12th place when, after the last two runs of the women\u2019s skeleton competition, she recorded a combined time of 3:52.13 seconds.<\/p>\n
Curtis finished in 12th place, 3.11 seconds behind Austria\u2019s Janine Flock, who took the gold medal.<\/p>\n
In Beijing, Curtis became the first Black Athlete to represent Team USA in skeleton. <\/p>\n
She also serves in the U.S. Air Force through the World Class Athlete Program. Her older brother served in the Airforce as well.<\/p>\n
Ahead of the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics, Curtis told NBC10 that she is proud to serve the country.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy job is to represent the air force in the upcoming Olympics, so everything is geared towards that and then as soon as that is done, I’m back to being an airman,\u201d said Curtis. \u201cIt is great\u2026I don\u2019t have to guess. They are able to provide the stability with healthcare and a regular salary so I am able to see my full potential.\u201d<\/p>\n
Curtis grew up in an athletic family and played several sports. <\/p>\n
While wrestling was an early favorite for her in elementary school, she eventually found track and field and stuck with it. She went on to compete as a heptathlete at Springfield College, finishing first in women\u2019s collegiate heptathlon at the Penn Relays in 2011.<\/p>\n
After college, Curtis went on to St. Lawrence University. She was a grad assistant there, when she decided to listen to advice from a former coach who suggested she give bobsled a try. <\/p>\n
She tried bobsled\u2019s combine and, as she said, \u201cwent down the rabbit hole.\u201d<\/p>\n
“I am grateful that I have the potential to do it\u2026and it lines up with something I actually want to do,\u201d Curtis said. \u201cThat\u2019s rare and I feel so grateful.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Milan Cortina Games was Curtis\u2019s second Olympics, but her first as a mom. Her daughter, Maeve, was born in November of 2023.<\/p>\n
Now a toddler, Maeve has traveled the world.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is just amazing to be able to put her in this atmosphere,\u201d said Curtis. \u201cAnd it is not just when she sees me compete, it is all the powerful women out here that she is able to see follow their dreams.\u201d<\/p>\n
When Curtis qualified for her second Winter Olympic Games, she stressed that she does not do any of this alone. Her husband, Jeff Milliron, has been her steady support on tour, she said. <\/p>\n
He is her strength and conditioning coach and partner every step of the way.<\/p>\n
Curtis and Milliron moved to Italy, where she is assigned to work at the Aviano Air Base. Milliron said they put everything aside to support Curtis in this Olympic dream.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen you have an opportunity to qualify for the Olympics, compete, you need to put things aside and focus on that,\u201d said Milliron. \u201cLuckily she gets to do it for second quad.\u201d<\/p>\n
They have seen their daughter Maeve grow into a little daredevil. Joking that watchig her mom go headfirst down an icy chute has convinced the toddler that she is invincible.<\/p>\n
When the family was preparing for the Milan Cortina Games, Curtis hoped she could teach her daughter this: \u201cPerseverance is a real thing. The grit, the tenacity, the resilience that we all go through. The women and the men out here, we all have our stories. And we are all crazy enough to go after this crazy dream and we have the support of the community behind us to actually do it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Curtis was also thankful for all of the support from her hometown. She said her \u201cwhy\u201d boils down to family. She is excited to share this Olympic experience with her loved ones.<\/p>\n
Her advice to younger athletes? Go after your dreams, gather your support network, and lift each other up.<\/p>\n