Hilary Knight is one of the more popular Team USA ice hockey athletes if not the from the entire Winter Olympics contingent. She is representing her country in her fifth Olympic Games and is hoping to keep her medal tally alive this year after winning one gold and three silvers.

But Knight isn’t only thankful to the Olympics for the laurels. This is the event where she met her partner, speed skater Brittany Bowe. Bowe and Knight had crossed paths in various Team USA event but it was during the last Olympics held in Beijing, that the two got to know each other. Their bond eventually blossomed into a relationship. The pair hasn’t tied the knot yet but live together in Salt Lake City.

Their getting together wasn’t the most romantic meet-cute, but the couple made it special. During the Beijing Games, COVID-19 restrictions remained, forcing athletes to maintain social distancing and masked walks. According to Bowe, in an exclusive interview on Team USA’s official website back in June 2025, she admitted that post-dinner walks were where the two got to speak.

“She asked if I wanted to go on a walk,” Bowe said. “That became our routine. We’d walk the Village after dinner and just talk. It was cool living in a bubble and not having outside distractions.”

Bowe, herself a two-time Bronze medalist at the 2018 and 2022 Games, is making her fourth appearance at the Olympics in Milan-Cortina. The Florida Atlantic University alum also had a brief career playing basketball in the FAU women’s programme.

Britanny Bowe was pleasantly surprised by Hilary Knight’s “calming presence”

After more than a decade and a half playing hockey, Hilary Knight had a completely different demeanor when interacting with Bowe. The speed skater opened up about it in the interview with Team USA’s website.

“I had always seen her as strong and competitive — the face of women’s hockey,” Bowe had said. “But when I was getting to know her, the first thing that caught my eye was how soft spoken she was, and the calming presence she had.”

The couple will hope for further success this year. Knight has already set the record for most goals scored by an American at the Olympics during Team USA’s 5-0 win over Team Finland on Saturday. Bowe is participating in three events, the individual 1000m and 1500m race and the team pursuit event.