On the 10th, at the Milan Ice Skating Arena in Italy, during the mixed relay. In the semifinals, Corinne Stoddard of the United States, who was in first place, suddenly lost her balance as if her skate blade caught.

Kim Gil-li of the Korean national team, who was chasing, could not avoid the skater who had slipped and went down as well. Korea failed to advance to the final.

In short track, a core event for Korea at the 2026 Milan·Cortina d'Ampezzo Winter Olympics, a variable has emerged. Because the ice is not hard, skaters are struggling early in the competition. After completing official training on the 12th, the men's team ace Lim Jong-eon (Goyang City Hall) said, “On race day the ice was not as good as during training,” saying the cause of his mistake lay in the ice quality. In short, the rink ice is soft. When the ice is not firm, racing stability drops. The faster the speed, the harder it is to keep balance. Kim Gil-li (Seongnam City Hall) also said, “Many skaters fell in the mixed relay. I thought we needed to be especially careful in the corners.”

Foreign skaters reacted the same way. Canada men skater William Dandjinou confessed, “The ice conditions were very bad. I had a hard time adapting.” The Netherlands skater Jens van t Wout likewise pointed to the same problem, saying, “The ice quality was tricky, making it difficult to race.” In fact, on the first day of short track, many skaters struggled because of the ice variable. Stoddard also fell in the women 500ｍ heats. The Netherlands failed to reach the final in the mixed 2000ｍ relay semifinals when Sandra Pelzebur fell.

Several possibilities are being raised. Korean American Andrew Heo of the United States short track national team said, “It seems the large crowd raised the temperature, dulling the ice conditions.”

It is also pointed out as a problem that short track and figure skating are held on the same day at the Milan Ice Skating Arena.

In short track, the ice should be about 5㎝ thick and hard, whereas for figure skating it should be relatively softer and about 3㎝ for landings. The claim is that the ice is not being managed properly to match the characteristics of each discipline.

However, the Olympic Organizing Committee says there is no issue. At a press conference on the 12th, committee spokesperson Luca Casassa said, “Only a few athletes raised concerns about the ice quality,” adding, “The ice maker is measuring the ice temperature and checking the condition even during races. The ice management is receiving good evaluations.”

The soft ice seems to favor host Italy, which has trained a lot at this venue. Italy beat powerhouse Canada to win gold in the mixed relay. Pietro Sighel of the Italy men's team said in an interview with Reuters, “It is true that the ice is tricky, but we have adapted well to it.”