Charlene Guignard: Italian Ice Dance Star Aiming for Milano-Cortina 2026 Olympic Gold

Italian ice dance star Charlene Guignard, partnered with long-time teammate and fiancée Marco Fabbri, glided into her home Olympics at Milano Cortina 2026 this week determined to crown a 17-year career with the medal Italy has chased since the days of Cappellini & Lanotte. Guignard & Fabbri, two-time ISU World silver-medalists, opened the figure-skating team event inside the brand-new Milano Ice Arena on Day 0, energising a capacity crowd with a rhythm dance to “Volare” that drew season-best scores and briefly lifted the Azzurri to second place in the standings. “This is the dream we’ve been repeating in our heads since we saw the flame pass through Milan two years ago,” Guignard said after the skate. “Now we want to keep Italian hearts beating until the ice dance free on Valentine’s Day.” Home-ice advantage has never looked stronger: the duo arrive undefeated this season after triumphs at the Grand Prix Final in Beijing and the European Championships in Zagreb. According to Italian skating federation data, their technical base value has risen by 1.80 points year-on-year, thanks to upgraded one-foot turns and a newly Level-4 midline step sequence their rivals have yet to match. H2: Why Milano Cortina Could Be Guignard’s Golden Moment • Peak form: At 34, Guignard is landing twizzles with quicker rotation speeds than she recorded in 2019, per ISU protocol sheets. • Scoring trends: The couple’s average rhythm-dance score this season (88.56) would have ranked first at the Beijing 2022 Games. • Rivals’ shake-ups: Canadian champions Gilles & Poirier withdrew from the team event with injury, removing a major podium threat. H2: Legacy Beyond the Podium Off the ice, Guignard spearheads “Green Ice,” a sustainability initiative that helped Milano Cortina recycle 92 % of rink-side plastic during the opening ceremony. She and Fabbri also mentor Italy’s next generation, including Junior Grand Prix winners Bruna Martini & Alessandro Filippi. “Charlène teaches us calm under pressure; Marco teaches us how to smile while doing it,” Martini told FS-Gossips last week. H2: What’s Next • 9 Feb: Ice dance rhythm dance medals in the team event • 13 Feb: Individual rhythm dance • 14 Feb: Individual free dance and medal ceremony With the Stadio di San Siro already sold out for the free dance watch-party, one thing is clear: if Charlene Guignard and Marco Fabbri can translate season-best numbers into Olympic metal, they’ll skate straight into Italian sporting folklore.