Sharp or Square - Milan Cortina Winter Games Update - Curling, USA Hockey, Eileen Gu and more

Summary

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Podcast Summary: The Herd with Colin Cowherd

Episode: Sharp or Square - Milan Cortina Winter Games Update - Curling, USA Hockey, Eileen Gu and more
Date: February 19, 2026
Host: Chad Millman
Co-host: Simon Hunter
Guest: Matt Mitchell
Presented by: Hard Rock Bet

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Episode Overview

This episode dives into the biggest stories, controversies, and betting angles from the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan Cortina, with a special focus on curling, Olympic hockey, and the cultural narratives captivating audiences worldwide. Chad Millman, Simon Hunter, and Matt Mitchell blend sharp betting analysis with genuinely entertaining Olympic chatter, dissecting why these games have become such a cultural and gambling phenomenon.

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Key Topics & Discussion Points

1. Olympic Viewership & Betting Buzz

[02:43–05:58]

• Chad notes nearly 30 million daily viewers across NBC platforms, with live and narrative coverage pulling in new fans.
• Betting on the Winter Olympics is historically niche, but this year there’s “so many freaking narratives going on” (Chad Millman, 04:43) that it’s attracting wider attention, even from non-bettors.
• The trio agree the stories driving these Olympics have made it must-watch viewing, even more than usual.

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2. Olympic Hockey: Pure Joys and Betting Angles

[05:58–11:04]

• Matt Mitchell on women’s hockey:
  “These American ladies are a collection of complete savages. I really look forward to watching them in the gold medal match... It has been such a joy.” (06:24)
• He shares the joy of watching elite hockey “end-to-end” (05:58–07:03), especially as an escape from “the doldrums of mid and late February.”
• Simon Hunter highlights the unique thrill:
  “You could tell this USA team gels, like these guys hang out. They actually like each other...as someone that's betting, looking for angles, and it's shown up.” (09:19)
• The men’s team stands out for chemistry and surprising cohesion, an X-factor in betting outcomes.
• USA women’s team described as so dominant that Hunter bet against their massive spreads; “It was just way too much” (10:08).

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3. The Olympic Village Condom Story

[11:04–13:34]

• Chad tells the now-infamous “10,000 condoms” story, revealing most were taken as Olympic souvenirs, not for use.
• Simon: “They put the... Olympic symbol on... why would you not grab a thousand?” (11:23)
• Chad references an ESPN Magazine piece about Olympic villages being “massive orgies... You've got good looking people in great shape... hyper competitive” (12:11)
• Sophie and Matt joke about missing out on the chance to flip Olympic condoms for profit.

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4. Curling Controversy: Canadians Accused of Cheating

[15:00–19:03]

• Chad tees it up: “Curling has a controversy and it has turned the world against Canada for being foul mouthed and poor sports. That's amazing to me.” (15:10)
• Sophie explains curling culture as “incredible sportsmanship and self regulation,” so Swedes setting up a “sting” video to catch Canada was a big deal.
  • “It's low stakes because it's curling, but it's also high stakes because it's the Olympics—10 out of 10 scandal.” (17:11, Sophie Cunningham)
• Simon likens it to “dash cam accident videos”—Canada is indignant until the Swedes calmly show footage.
• Consensus: the scandal’s drama is what makes the Olympics great television and conversation fodder.

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5. Viral Athlete Moments & Human Stories

[18:20–20:24]

• A medal-winning athlete admitted to cheating—on his girlfriend, not at sports—in a live post-event interview.
• Panel laughs at misleading headlines (“athlete admits cheating”), and the bizarre reality of how these Olympic moments instantly go viral.
• Simon: “As much as they think we're crazy Americans, there's nothing better than a crazy European.” (20:10)
• Chad: “You get stuff like that where it's just these crazy Europeans.”

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6. American Stars: Triumphs and Vulnerability

[25:21–29:48]

• Chad explores the media “narrative of presence and openness” as American stars discuss pressure and failure:
  • “The quad God falling and openly admitting... pressure getting to him, which I think is wonderful...” (25:21)
  • Michaela Shiffrin’s redemption: after missing gold until her last attempt, she becomes “the winningest skier for gold in American history now ... obviously the greatest skier, downhill skier in history, man or woman.” (25:50)
• Simon and Sophie marvel at Norway’s ski dynasty, especially Johan Husflat Klebo:
  • “He has created a new technique that makes him so dominant people can't see him when they are like in second place.” (26:45, Chad Millman)
  • Sophie: “He was running at over 11 miles an hour at one point ... that was absolutely the most impressive part.” (27:24)

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7. Eileen Gu: Nationality, Money & Moscow Gold

[30:34–35:42]

• Chad critiques NBC’s constant focus on Eileen Gu’s American roots and her decision to ski for China.
• Chad:
  “The number of times I have heard announcers say, ‘Eileen Gu ... skiing for China to honor her mother’ — if I got a dollar, I would be as rich as Eileen Gu for all the money she has gotten from China.” (30:45)
• Wall Street Journal reports Gu is now the fourth highest-paid female athlete globally, thanks largely to Chinese endorsements.
• Simon: “To me, China ... this is a smart little cheat code... using all the institutions that America has, all the great coaching, and you're just paying the back end.” (32:13)
• Philosophical discussion:
  • Chad: “Isn’t part of the joy of the Olympics competing for your country? ... At the end of the day, it’s not just about being a mercenary.”
  • Simon: “I could never ... I'd rather be great under the American flag than China's flag.” (35:00)
  • Matt: “The idea of two countries ... competing for my athletic services on the world stage is as insane a hypothetical as if I had wings.” (35:57)

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8. Why These Olympics Stand Out

[36:15–End]

• Chad: “I think we can all agree ... this Olympics has been a conversation starter ... In our seven years together, that's how big the Olympics have been.” (36:15)
• All hosts marvel at the cultural resonance and buzz the Milan Cortina games have generated: “Thirty million people a day watching these things. And now we're talking about it.”

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Matt Mitchell (on women’s hockey):
  “These American ladies are a collection of complete savages. I really look forward to watching them in the gold medal match...” (06:24)
• Simon Hunter (on team chemistry and betting hockey):
  “You could tell this USA team gels, like these guys hang out. They actually like each other...as someone that's betting, looking for angles, and it's shown up.” (09:19)
• Chad Millman (on stories driving the Olympics):
  “There’s so many freaking narratives going on. That to me have been amazing.” (04:43)
• Sophie Cunningham (curling scandal):
  “It was a perfect scandal. There was a good guy, there’s bad guys, there’s a sting ... it’s the Olympics—10 out of 10 scandal.” (17:11)
• Simon Hunter (on Eileen Gu and nationality):
  “...if I was great at sport ... I'd rather be great under the American flag than China's flag. But these other people, I get it ... especially if you're a west coaster and the money is just that big like that, that's an insane...amount of money.” (35:00)

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• Olympic betting and audience growth: [02:43–05:58]
• Hockey deep-dive (US teams, betting): [05:58–11:04]
• Condom “shortage” story & Olympic Village: [11:04–13:34]
• Curling cheating scandal: [15:00–19:03]
• Athlete admits “cheating” on girlfriend: [18:20–20:24]
• US stars under pressure/Shiffrin tribute/Norway’s Klebo: [25:21–29:48]
• Eileen Gu, nationality, money & athlete allegiance: [30:34–35:42]
• Olympics as cultural moment/closing thoughts: [36:15–End]

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Episode Tone & Takeaways

Lively, sharp, and irreverent, the hosts bring a blend of serious sports insight, betting smarts, and cultural humor to their Olympics discussion. This episode not only delivers practical takeaways for sports bettors but also celebrates the truly wild, human stories that make the Olympics far more compelling than just medal counts. From betting angles in hockey and curling to philosophical debates about national allegiance, it’s a vibrant, accessible look at why these Winter Games are striking such a chord in 2026.

Transcript

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[Sophie Cunningham]

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[Chad Millman]

welcome to Sharp or Square presented by Hard Rock Bet. We are part of the Volume Podcast Network. This is the Betting show. It makes the squares sharper and makes the wise guys pay attention all year long. I am Chad Millman. I am joined by my bff, my companion, my compadre, my co host, professional better Simon Hunter. Hello, Simon.

[Simon Hunter]

Hello, Chad. It's, it's that time of year, buddy. Olympics.

[Chad Millman]

Olympic time. And that's why we're not just doing it, you and me today, we're having Matt Mitchell join us in his Olympic jacket because we've been talking a lot about the Olympics before our records because Matt Mitchell is betting them like a freaking maniac. And the truth is, if you look at the numbers, there's nearly 30 million people a day watching the Olympics across all of the various NBC platforms. And I'm watching too. And the coverage is phenomenal between the live during the day and then the recaps and sort of more narrative focused shows going on on the main network at night. It's truly awesome. I'm loving it. Matt Mitchell just lost his mind because he's got a bet going on right now on some Canadian hockey game as we record this. Matt. Matt Mitchell, welcome to the show.

[Sophie Cunningham]

Thanks for having me. It's really an honor. Big first time, long time, big fan, right? Big fan. Yeah. Especially hopefully there's some more indulgent Chad Millman focused Chad Millman stories as told by Chad Millman in this, this episode.

[Chad Millman]

Yeah, I mean, I guess we can address the elephant in the room is that, you know, I've had a crazy eight weeks and in our first non real, non football show, Simon asked what was going on and I had just come back from the All Star game and I had some stories. So fucking sue me.

[Sophie Cunningham]

Yeah, Simon, it's so crazy that someone so handsome and funny could also be so interesting and humble at the same time. We are, we are truly blessed.

[Simon Hunter]

It's true.

[Chad Millman]

Well, now it's like I'm at the dinner table. So listen, today guys, we are going to talk about the Olympics because there is a ton going on. And I would say even if you're not betting it. And look, the truth is, you know, there's been a lot of conversations around the prediction markets and the betting markets that they're creating around the Olympics as well as the betting markets available for the Olympics on all of the online sports betting operators that are legal. And the truth is, Olympics is not a big betting sport. It's never been a big betting sport. Winter Olympics especially is not a big betting sport. But I will say that these Olympics have captured people's attention because there are so Many freaking narratives going on. That to me have been amazing. And so I want us to go through like what are. Since we all have very specific points of view, what our favorite betting stories are so far. But I know you guys are both very invested in the hockey. So Matt Mitchell set us up for some hockey betting conversation and what that's been like for you during the Olympics.

[Sophie Cunningham]

Oh, I think Olympic hockey is such an absolute joy to watch. The men's and the women's, I mean really, especially the women's. You're getting so much action, it's laid out one after the other. You've got games. I mean this morning I woke up at 6:30 in the morning with two small children and I'm great. I'm already in the third period of an Olympic hockey game. I wake up to a full lather because Slovakia and Germany are neck and neck. It's such a nice reprieve as someone that doesn't really like college basketball at all. To the doldrums of mid and late February to have high stakes, highly organized, elite non stop hockey action every day for basically two weeks. It has been such a joy. And these American ladies are a collection of complete savages. And I really look forward to watching them in the gold medal match, which unfortunately will be, I think basically being played as this episode releases on Thursday.

[Chad Millman]

I love the idea of you getting up your two small children who can be incredibly challenging. I mean not your son, he's a dream, but your daughter, she can give you some fits and needing to manage a full sweat while making them breakfast and getting them ready for school.

[Simon Hunter]

Yeah.

[Sophie Cunningham]

As usual, a lot of. Dan, why are you making that face? No, I was thinking about the weather. Yeah, it's great. I've been doing, actually my daughter was born the week that sports shut down in 2020. And then I can remember holding her then, extremely small body when kbo, when the Korean baseball was coming back and those games would end at 6am and just holding her, which is. I should be humiliated by this admission, but I'm not. But I can remember holding her looking out the window and the sun's coming up, a beautiful spring morning and just being like if one more goddamn Korean bullpen blows a seven run lead, I'm not gonna live to see this girl's 10th birthday. We need real sports to come back and we need to come back right away. And, and at this, how these hockey games throw a little taste of that.

[Simon Hunter]

Yeah, I was, I was gonna say the, the funny thing about Winter Olympics is especially because I'm just so into football. I honestly have no idea it's coming. And when all of a sudden it's just here, like I'll see there the opening game ceremonies, whatever it is. Also you're just like, wow, four years just went by. That happens to me every time. I always know the Summer Olympics is coming because like you said, it's so much bigger. You know, it's coming, the Winter Olympics, it, to me, it's the best surprise. It's something that grew up on the X Games. Always loved the Winter X Games, snowboarding, all that stuff. And as I've gotten older, obviously, just like anyone does, especially as a gambler, you watch all the sports now. As I've gotten older and know for me my first love will always still be the snowboarding stuff. Like this year, or maybe they had it the last Olympics, but they do these snowboarding races I've really gotten into. They basically wear like red, yellow, blue, orange, whatever. And it's four teams and they race against each other, you know, four different countries. I've really loved that for betting aspect. But yeah, for. I said to man Mitchell, for betting wise, hockey has been what I've been betting on, Chad. And you know, the USA women, we've kind of hit the peak. Like, I didn't want to fade them last week, but I think they're like seven and a half or eight goal favorites. I had to go against that. It was just way too much. I think they won five nothing against Sweden, who's, you know, Sweden, very talented. The US Women are just that dominant right now. And I think they beat Italy 6 nothing. But the men's has been the, the really big surprise here of. It's always interesting, Chad, where they just throw these pros together and you don't know how they're going to gel. And hockey guys, I mean, I don't know. Everyone has different opinion on different sports guys. To me, when I think of my favorite personality types, I always think of the hockey guys, the hockey bros. Like even in high school, I love the hockey guys. In college, I love the hockey guys. As I gotten older, I meet hot guys who play, you know, weekend warriors, play hockey and stuff. They're always the best characters. They're either hilarious to drink with or whatever. They're just always funny guys. And you could tell this USA team gels like these guys hang out. They actually like each other. And you're looking for that stuff as someone that's betting, looking for angles and it's shown up like they should have Blown out. Denmark, they won 6 3. If you go back and look at that, those three goals by Denmark, super stupid fluky goals where it's like this is hockey. Crashing nets, very fluky. Germany dominated them. Germany got like a fluke one goal at the very end of the game. They beat them 5:1. So I don't know about man Mitchell. They play today. Like we're doing this on Wednesday. I play at 3:10. The women play tomorrow. If anyone wants to catch that game at 1:10 Eastern. I would definitely check out the women's obviously. But yeah, the men's I'm looking for today they play against Sweden. So obviously people here, that's one of the result there. But I honestly think this team is legit. They have a real chance to win it all.

[Chad Millman]

What's amazing about this Olympics, it's, it's really taken hold of the narrative and sort of for fandom, right, the, the condom story, the running out of 10,000 condoms is, you know, the story behind that.

[Simon Hunter]

Why they, they disappeared.

[Chad Millman]

Well, apparently people were taking them for souvenirs.

[Simon Hunter]

Exactly. They put the. It has literally a condom with the Olympic symbol on.

[Chad Millman]

Yeah.

[Simon Hunter]

So like these guys who don't make any money, why would you not grab a thousand? I love that like a middle America was like, oh my God, the Olympics are having tons of sex. All these condoms are gone. But here's the thing, it's like, dude, they are having sex, but they are grabbing that stuff to sell. Let's be real, that's a money maker.

[Chad Millman]

But still, I remember we did this story at ESPN the Magazine, I think around the 2012 Olympics. Sam Aliport, who's a great reporter, really fun writer, does a lot of TV stuff now in la, he wrote this story about the Olympic Games basically being, always being, not this, but massive orgies. Just like, you've got good looking people

[Simon Hunter]

in great shape together, young people in

[Chad Millman]

great shape who are like hyper competitive,

[Simon Hunter]

most stressful environment of their lives.

[Chad Millman]

Yes. And like, and they stay in the village and they just fucking let it go. Right. And so there is a lot of sex going on in the Olympic Village, regardless of whether or not they're using all 10,000 condoms. The good news is, according to the New York Post, as of today, a new shipment of condoms has made it to the Olympic village. So rest assured, people can have safe sex in Milan Cortina right now.

[Sophie Cunningham]

I'm not just saying this because I lost all my money betting on chechy alive at 10 to 1 to beat Canada and just had to watch them lose the minute overtime started. But I, I am embarrassed. Another, the one millionth example of how I'm still poor, that I didn't think to just get on a plane, go to the Olympics to grab as many condoms as I could carry to fly immediately home and sell them on the black market and make a killing. Like, I'm sure so many of the world's finest athletes and their hangers on thought of, like, what was I doing? I was just sitting here listening to Chad's NBA All Star game stories instead of doing that. Like, it's a shame there's a bus. There's no bus line between Milwaukee in Milan. Otherwise I probably would have thought of it.

[Chad Millman]

Would you say that my all Star game stories are better, worse, or the same than, say, the story about penis Flapgate at the Olympics over the past two weeks?

[Sophie Cunningham]

I mean, that's really a question for like, I don't know, like Jimmy Goldstein or Demi Moore. I mean, that's a question you'd ask like a list celebrity.

[Chad Millman]

Matt, it's, it's to me like you're showing your Milwaukee.

[Sophie Cunningham]

I. She's always been Mrs. Bruce Willis to me as the world's number one Bruce Willis fan.

[Simon Hunter]

And people are being too hard on Chad here. I, I said to multiple people that were making fun of you, were picking you, Chad. I said, at least he didn't tell us what his son's college roommate thinks because that to me was peak level Chad just missing the plot. I never want to hear ever again about Chad's son's roommate in college. What that kid thinks literally could care less. But Chad, he cares. And that's why we love Chad.

[Chad Millman]

I don't even remember what that story,

[Simon Hunter]

whatever it was. I just remember when you went there, I was just like, my God, Indiana football.

[Sophie Cunningham]

Yeah, sorry. Indiana probably just lost his mind. He was in like a state of psychosis.

[Chad Millman]

Yeah. Oh, my God.

[Sophie Cunningham]

When Hulk Hogan would say he was entering a state of Hulkamania, like Chad's Hulkamania was Indiana football for like a hundred days. That was quite a time to be alive.

[Simon Hunter]

Now what are we gonna do, boys? Are we gonna. Are we gonna. Are we gonna make fun of Canada for being cheaters in the lamest game ever? Are we gonna talk about this? The controversy?

[Sophie Cunningham]

The curling.

[Simon Hunter]

Curling.

[Chad Millman]

Canadian curling. This is what, this is what. Why the Olympics is so great this year is curling has a controversy and it has turned the world against Canada for being foul mouthed and poor sports. That's amazing to me. I still can't tell if they're Cheating if they're doing the double touch. But now all of a sudden there's got to be intensive video reviews of all of it. They could be getting away with it. I don't think Canadians cheat. I love Canadians. Very kind people. Matt Mitchell, where do we stand on the Canadians cheating?

[Sophie Cunningham]

I really appreciated that. My understanding of the controversy is that there's no the cult. The culture of curling is one of incredible sportsmanship and self regulation. The athletes call their own fouls on one another. It's very sporting in that sense, very old school. So as part of that, there's not traditionally a down the line view of what's called the hog line, which would result in a double touch if you're touching the, the stone when it touches that line. The Swedes believed the Canadians were cheating and not calling it. So they set up their own camera angle. Which favorite part?

[Simon Hunter]

They set up their own.

[Sophie Cunningham]

A sting. They set up an Olympic sting. Which is why the Canadian, Mark Kennedy was so apoplectic and profane about defending himself because he thought, well, there's no way. There's no footage of it. That's like, that's our whole thing as former, all of us as former employees of a, of a Danish owned company. The whole Scandinavian region is so unbelievably calm and refined and within themselves emotionally, I'm none of those things. So seeing the Canadian lose his mind and get really pissy and the Swedes look at them with the same look many executives look to me when I would be explaining something of like how curious your anger is. Very curious to me. Not. Not sure it calls for this histrionics. And they nailed him, nailed him perfectly. It was a perfect scandal. It was. There's a good guy, there's bad guys, there's a sting. It's low stakes because it's curling, but it's also high stakes because it's the Olympics 10 out of 10 scandal.

[Simon Hunter]

And it's my favorite part too. It's like I don't watch him anymore because now I mess with my head about driving. I used to always watch those dash cam videos of accidents and it's when the people getting like reverse ended people and they get out the blame on them.

[Sophie Cunningham]

They.

[Simon Hunter]

And then they see the dash camera. That's what the Canadian guy felt like where he was so sure, so confident. And the Swedish guy, like Maverick said, he's just so relaxed. Letting him just air it out and then simply being like, we brought our own camera in here. I'm going to show the footage to the Referees. That was just icing on the cake.

[Sophie Cunningham]

Great comparison. Great comparison.

[Chad Millman]

Yeah. Very, very well done, Simon. It's also a little bit. It's that they pre planned that. Right. They must have seen some kind of footage or in competition.

[Simon Hunter]

Some other team told on them apparently.

[Chad Millman]

Okay.

[Simon Hunter]

And they denied it again at that time. And again, the Swedes. I love it. They're like, we'll set up our own camera and literally zoom in on this guy.

[Chad Millman]

This is a juicy, soapy, dishy Olympics. We had the dude who won a. Won a gold medal, I think, and while being interviewed, admitted to cheating on

[Simon Hunter]

his girlfriend or might have been a bronze, but still, even. Even, yeah, it was bronze.

[Chad Millman]

Bronze.

[Sophie Cunningham]

Incredible.

[Chad Millman]

Yeah, well, that's just. That just shows how dumb you are.

[Simon Hunter]

You know what he was doing, though, that was a good move by him because it's like, yeah, he knew that would be a big story because I think it was like day two. And yeah, they ran. They immediately ate it up. Right away they're like, oh, did. It was like the next day they're like, did she take you back? And it's like, no, I'm still blocked.

[Sophie Cunningham]

Yeah, I, I think my favorite part of that, by the way, was that the initial headlines were essentially, athlete admits cheating in acceptance speech, which was true and misleading and made everybody click on it. And then I read it, it was like, oh, outstanding work. Perfect execution because it was even more hilarious. And then admitting actual cheating at the event. Admitting cheating on a girlfriend.

[Chad Millman]

Oh, perfect. You think he did this to manipulate the story and get more action? Like, this would put him on the market and give him opportunities.

[Simon Hunter]

Well, he's already a narcissist because he cheated on a girl after whatever it was, two, three months. So that just adds it up. I honestly, when I first saw the headline, like you, I thought it was like that. I think it was like a South American soccer player that basically thanked his wife and then his girlfriend in his acceptance speech, like, wasn't thinking clearly because he was so excited. You say, I want to thank my wife and my girlfriend. And then, like, had to retract and be like, yeah, I cheated on my wife. I thought he did that moment. It was like, no, this guy openly admitted to it. He was like, yeah, I, my. I told my girlfriend before I came here and she dumped me and she's the love of my life, even though we've only been together for three months. And it's like, oh, my God, this man is a head kisser. Six months, whatever it was. But yeah, that again, like, you said, I love these Olympic stories because you get stuff like that where it's just these crazy Europeans. As much as they think we're crazy Americans, there's nothing better than a crazy European.

[Chad Millman]

There's two more stories I want to talk about, but let's take a quick break and hear from our sponsors at Hard Rock bet. Today's show is brought to you by our presenting sponsor, Hard Rock Bet, Florida's sportsbook. I know it's tough with no football, but like the song says, I bet I will survive. With Hard Rock Bet, there's always something to bet on every night. Hoops, hockey and so much more. Plus all the great same game parlay, live betting and player prop options you're used to. And did you know Hard Rock Bet is the official sports betting partner of the Miami Heat and the Orlando Magic? Incredible. So if you haven't signed up with Hard Rock Bet yet, there's never been a better time. New signups can double their winnings on their first 10 bets, max 50 bucks. That's right. If you would have won a hundred bucks on your bet, make that $200. The Hard Rock Bet Sportsbook app is the only legal sportsbook for whenever you're in Florida, and it's also live in Arizona, Ohio, New Jersey, Indiana, Tennessee, Virginia, Illinois, Colorado and Michigan. Coming soon to more states, too. Plus, Hard Rock Bet offers new promos daily, so whenever you're listening, just open the app and check out what you've got. Any day of the week, download the Hard Rock Bet and make your first deposit. Offered by the Seminole Tribe of Florida in Florida, Offered by Seminole hard Rock Digital LLC in all other states must be 21 or over and physically present in Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, New Jersey, Ohio, Tennessee or Virginia. To play, terms and conditions apply. Concerned about gambling in Florida? Call 1833 playwise in Indiana, if you or someone you know has a gambling problem at once, help call 1-809 with it and in Ohio, call 1-800-my reset gambling problem, call 1-800- gambler in Arizona, Colorado, Illinois, Michigan, New Jersey, Tennessee and Virginia.

[Simon Hunter]

This month, iHeartRadio is celebrating the stars

[Sophie Cunningham]

of the 2026 Winter Games. Michigan natives Madison Chalk and Evan Bates are the undisputed leaders of American ice dance. As reigning world champions, they arrive in Milano Cortina with a reputation for storytelling

[Simon Hunter]

and seamless chemistry that captivates judges and fans alike.

[Sophie Cunningham]

After years of climbing the ranks, the duo is poised to cap their illustrious careers with the ultimate prize.

[Simon Hunter]

They take the ice with one bringing Olympic gold home for more Winter Games Gold Search olympics on the iHeartRadio app so do you want to start shopping for your next car but don't know where to begin? Start at CarMax, where you can shop your way from start to finish. Whether you're shopping for something practical, adventurous or luxurious, CarMax puts you in the driver's seat. And if you want to shop cars that fit your budget, CarMax has your back all the way. Simply grab your phone and get pre qualified from your couch, the dog park, or even on a coffee break. It's quick, easy, and has zero impact on your credit score. Want to Explore your options? CarMax has plenty of options. In fact, with over 45,000 cars to choose from, CarMax has rides for almost every budget, including more than 25,000 cars priced in under $25,000. From browsing online to checking out cars on the lot, you can shop your way at CarMax. Want to get started on the search for your next car? [e-mail] for details and get pre qualified today. Want to drive CarMax? Hey, this is US Olympic gold medalist Tara Davis Woodhull and I'm US Paralympic

[Sophie Cunningham]

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[Sophie Cunningham]

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[Chad Millman]

All right, so to me, the contrast here between the American expectations and the quad God falling and openly admitting sort of the pressure getting to him, which I think is wonderful, that he's, that he's present and open and talking about it. Michaela Shiffrin has done the same thing. And until her last attempt she had not won a gold medal. She now won a gold medal in the slalom. She's actually, I think, the winningest skier for gold in American history now with three. She's only the second person to win the slalom in two different Olympics. No taking away from Michaela Schiffrin, who's obviously the greatest skier, downhill skier in history, man or woman. But meanwhile, Norway talk about like Scandinavian Nordic countries that just keep moving forward. Their cross country skier who now has, I think 10 overall gold medals. Johan Husflat Klebo, who basically runs uphill during cross country skiing and he's doing six minute miles on skis in the snow. That is to me, bar none, the best story of the games. He has created a new technique that makes him so dominant people can't see him when they are like in second place. He's so far ahead. The best.

[Sophie Cunningham]

I read a fabulous piece and I can't find it. I can't credit the person, but the person was in Nordic kind of games and said the most impressive part of that isn't that they, you know, he's acting like they cut out Secretariat's heart and put it inside his body. It was that he was doing that in a, in, in concert with this incredible support team that these Scandinavian teams have for these games that because they're the best at it, that you have to wax your skis and you have to use two different kinds, one to help you slide and one that helps you stick. And so it requires mastery to apply. But if you screw it up, for example, if you try running up the hill like that and you're using it wrong, you'll slide backwards. It'll be totally self defeating. So that the way to do that, to execute it as he did, was to stomp your feet straight down really hard. And the fact that he was running at like over 11 miles an hour at one point and looked like he was just, it was churning like a train, but he was actually having to stomp each step straight down into the snow. But doing so so quickly that it looks like he's, he's jogging was absolutely the most impressive part. Of it because he had to do it in such a precise way. And if you, if you messed up, that would. Because you got tired or whatever, you would ruin your whole advantage.

[Chad Millman]

Remarkable.

[Sophie Cunningham]

This guy's an absolute, like, animal. It was unbelievable to watch.

[Simon Hunter]

Yeah, I never heard of him. And I, I feel it was NBC or someone did a storyline on the first day and it was like, this is the Michael Phelps of this cross country skiing. It's like, all right, I got to check out this guy's event. The first one I watched, I was joking with you, Chad there. The announcers were like. And this is his worst event, so this should be a real challenge for him. And then it cuts to, you know, an hour later, he's got like a 10 second lead on another guy from Norway because Norway is just dominant at this cross country skiing stuff. And he blows him out. He wins. And he's, like, laying down there. All these guys, they collapse at the end of it, right? They're just so exhausted. They lay there for a minute. And this guy is such a good dude. He doesn't get up and go do, like, interviews and stuff like that. He waits for his teammates who come and collapse and then takes off all their skis for them. And it's like the humbleness of this guy and the fact that he is just. Everyone says he is a psycho, like you said. His training apparently is just insane. The same thing you saw about Michael Phelps. Michael Phelps did not miss a day in the pool for 10 years. Every day, seven days a week. And apparently this guy's the same thing. It's middle of July. He's going to the highest Nordic pines Alps, you know, of the top, the Arctic Circle of Norway, just to go uphill on snow. Like, this guy is just a full on psycho. So. Yeah, he's what, 24? You said. So we're gonna get another two, possibly three more Olympics of this guy. We'll see how he. How he heads into his 30s. But pretty incredible what he's accomplished at such a young age.

[Chad Millman]

I think you guys know from having worked with me for so long, and now our audience knows I am that kind of selfless, unselfish person you are. I would, I would not celebrate before helping you guys take off your skis.

[Sophie Cunningham]

Oh, thanks, Chad.

[Simon Hunter]

I would, I would have a beer before. I'd have at least a beer while waiting. I mean.

[Chad Millman]

Well, I would have won by so much that I could. I could do that.

[Simon Hunter]

Go get your nuts. Go enjoy yourself.

[Sophie Cunningham]

Yeah, you have some, some exotic oils and nuts from trees. We don't even have access to I.

[Chad Millman]

They're the ones at Jimmy Goldstein's house.

[Sophie Cunningham]

Yeah.

[Chad Millman]

Yeah.

[Sophie Cunningham]

You and Demi, you went to me sharing a macadamia.

[Chad Millman]

You can't get those nuts on the flip side of this. And this is the last story. Sorry to end it on a downer,

[Simon Hunter]

but no, I'm glad you put this one. Is this gonna be the China stuff?

[Chad Millman]

Yeah. For all the glory of NBC's mastery of the Olympics and how great the stories are. The number of times I have heard announcers say, Eileen Gu, who's from San Francisco, is skiing for China to honor her mother. I have heard it so many times that if I got a dollar, I would be as rich as Eileen Gu for all the money she has gotten from China. Which was a story this week that broke that she has been paid millions of dollars to ski and compete for China. To put it in context, she is the fourth highest paid female athlete in the world behind Coco Groff, Sabalenka, and Swiatech. That how I say her name, the tennis player. So apparently, just competing for China was another money grab, Simon.

[Simon Hunter]

Yeah, I saw. It was basically like, her incentives were wild, too. Like. And no one knows how real the money is because it is China. But she. I believe she did get silver. Apparently, she had gotten gold. It was, like, insane. What. They were going to give her part of her contract. But, yeah, I think the story you saw, the same one I did, Chad, was that China basically spent 40 million on just American athletes alone, Wall Street Journal, to compete in the Olympics, which is. You know, a lot of people might be like, stick their nose up, nose up at it, but we talk all the time, America's advantage, especially on the women's side, from your youth to your adulthood, of just support in sports. It's not like these other countries. It's just America is just so much more committed to sports in these other countries. So to me, China, I feel like this is a smart little cheat code for them if they. If they can keep getting away with this, because you're using all the institutions that America has, all the great coaching, everything like that, and you're just paying the back end of it, and you can get reap the rewards of it. So because we know China's Winter Olympics is not good like that. You know, there's the ice, the fast skating and stuff like that is stuff they've always been good at, the synchronized skating. But, yeah, this was. I was shocked to read this because once again, I didn't know any of this was Happening. So, yeah, good breakdown by you, I

[Sophie Cunningham]

mean, I don't want to get overly serious or overly political, but I do want to address right to camera, the People's Republic of China. Right now, it's just you and me. China. Listen to me. Only you can help defeat the capitalist dogs of the Indiana Hoosier football program. Together with your tens of millions of dollars, you, me, and my University of Missouri Tiger football program can overthrow them and begin a new glorious revolution within the sec. My phone lines are open. I can help bridge this gap. And it will only cost you several hundred million dollars. We can do this. I support you.

[Chad Millman]

I actually wonder. I really thought you were going to make a plea for them to sponsor your daughter as a future Olympian in whatever sport she chooses. This is a serious question, which is how much would it take for you to decide to compete for another country in the Olympics? Because to me isn't part of the joy of being in the Olympics is like competing for your country and I don't know, like, you want to make money. I'm not, I'm not blind to the idea that a lot of these athletes are professionals. They make a lot of money. You get bonuses for being the Olympics, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera. But like, at the end of the day, it's not just about being a mercenary. Competing for the most money is about the joy and like draping the flag and walking in the opening ceremonies and walking in the closing ceremonies and being part of a team of countrymen that like, is supposed to be inherent in the experience. So what would. I can't even think of a number that it would take for me to want to go compete for somebody else.

[Simon Hunter]

You've had a very good, comfortable life, Chad, so that makes total sense. I'm right there with you. I could never. I don't know what the dollar amount would have to be, but if I was great at sport, I'm right there with you. I'd rather be great under the American flag than China's flag. But these other people, I get it, like, if you have some sort of ties to it, especially if you're a west coaster and the money is just that big like that, that's an insane, like, what they're reporting is an insane amount of money that she's being paid. So I get your perspective, I share it, but I can't hold it against her. That's just so much money to turn down. And like you said, I think they're trying to use the loop of she's doing it for her mom, whatever, Whatever gets her to sleep at night. But we all know, we all know. So you know you got to live with that, right?

[Chad Millman]

Simon is always the voice of, like, the cold hard truth, whereas I'd like to believe in sort of the best of people. Simon doesn't see that. Matt Mitchell.

[Sophie Cunningham]

Yeah, the idea of two countries, including America competing for my athletic services on the world stage is as insane a hypothetical as if I had wings, would I still be allowed to compete in the Olympics? I'm not even really sure how to engage with this hypothetical.

[Chad Millman]

I think we can all agree on one thing. This Olympics has been a conversation starter because I don't think we've ever talked about the Olympics on this podcast, either in its previous iteration or obviously in this one. In our seven years together, that's how big the Olympics have been. Thirty million people a day watching these things. And now we're talking about it. We are off next week. We're back the week of March 2nd. That's kind of when football season kicks off. We have some football conversations lined up for that week already. A lot of conversations that are going to impact player movement futures, how we're digesting handicapping and thinking about the NFL season to come. This has been Sharper Square, part of the Volume Podcast Network. Watch or listen on YouTube at Sharper Squiddy or Sharper Square. Like this video. Subscribe to the channel. Download us on Spotify. Apple Pods, wherever you get your pods. Rate, review, subscribe. Leave us. Five stars. Say whatever you want. Feedback is a gift. Till next time. Love you.

[Sophie Cunningham]

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[Chad Millman]

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[Sophie Cunningham]

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[Chad Millman]

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[Simon Hunter]

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[Sophie Cunningham]

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[Sophie Cunningham]

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[Chad Millman]

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[Sophie Cunningham]

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