Casey Dawson skating in the Milano Cortina Olympics. Photo: courtesy of Dawson Family

MILAN, Italy — Finishing in eighth place, Park City’s Casey Dawson competed in his second Olympic Games, crossing the line in the 5,000 meters at the Milan Cortina Olympics with a time of 6:11.88.

Mike and Tami Dawson on their way to watch their son, Casey, speed skate in Italy. Photo: TownLift // Michele Roepke

Speed skaters from Norway, Czechia, and Italy took home the gold, silver, and bronze medals, respectively.

Similar Reads On TownLift

Casey’s parents, Mike and Tami, told TownLift on the day of the Opening Ceremony that they have vivid memories of their son’s first Olympics four years ago — a stressful lead-up marked by repeated COVID tests, failed results, and finally a last-minute clearance that allowed him to travel to Beijing, where he ultimately won a medal.

This time around, they were eager to travel to Milan, as the pandemic had prevented overseas spectators during Dawson’s last Olympic appearance. They watched the 2026 Opening Ceremony from the Delta Sky Lounge during their Atlanta layover, which was fine by them as he elected to not walk and instead save his energy for this first event.

Casey has been keeping in touch with his parents by phone, sharing that the atmosphere at these Games feels far more electric and vibrant than his previous Olympics, and he’s benefiting from having a Team USA nutritionist on hand.

The 50 or so hand-drawn cards created by students at Casey’s former Jeremy Ranch Elementary School were a great boost to the spirit of the whole family, including his girlfriend who is here along with one of his two brothers.

A resident at the Utah Olympic Park, Casey now trains and competes in Salt Lake City after getting his start in the sport at the Park City Ice Arena with the Park City Speed skating Club, thanks to the support of the Youth Sports Alliance.

His parents used to visit Park City on ski trips and fell in love with the community, eventually purchasing what would become Casey’s childhood home where they still live in Pinebrook.

“It’s always fun to spectate live in Europe at speed skating competitions,” Tami said. “The sport is so widely watched here that Casey gets a lot of crowd applause and appreciation.” Mike added, “He has made so many friends from around the world that it’s neat to see him with them.”

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Olympics signage in Milan. Photos by TownLift // Michele Roepke