Welcome to the Party: Hilary Knight & Brittany Bowe – Gold, Love, and the Olympics

Podcast: Welcome to the Party
Hosts: Abby Wambach & Julie Foudy (with regular legend Billie Jean King)
Episode Date: March 10, 2026
Special Guests: Hilary Knight (USA Hockey Captain), Brittany Bowe (Olympic Speed Skater)
Theme: Olympic glory, game-changing moments in women’s sports, and the power couple’s engagement story

Episode Overview

In this vibrant episode, Abby Wambach and Julie Foudy invite Olympic icons Hilary Knight and Brittany Bowe to “the party,” celebrating their recent gold medal wins – and engagement. The hosts dig into what it means to break barriers in women’s sports, Olympic pressure, the artistry of teamwork, and building a more equitable future. Listeners are treated to a funny, candid, and moving conversation about legacy, love, and leadership – all with the show’s trademark warmth and humor.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Olympic Power Couple: Gold and Engagement

• Hilary Knight and Brittany Bowe’s engagement story is front and center, set against their Olympic journeys. Hilary reveals the proposal's ins and outs: proposing in the Olympic Village, hiding her torn MCL injury, and organizing a family-inclusive moment.

  • [30:40] Julie: “How did you decide? Did you know the whole time you were going to do it at the Olympics, Hil?”
  • [30:45] Hilary Knight: “...I had an epiphany. Like, we've spent majority of our lives in the Olympic Games... what better place than the place that brought us together?”

• Brittany had no clue: She discusses how her sister almost derailed (and then made) the surprise.

  • [31:41] Brittany Bow: “I had no idea it was going to be happening at the Olympics...I just, like, made a joke. I held my finger up. I'm like, God, my fingers looking really naked these days.”

• Knee injury twist: Hilary had to prep her injured leg to literally get down on (half) a knee for the proposal.

  • [34:41] Hilary Knight: “...I'm like, kind of injured too. And so, like, as an aside, that morning, I go up to the med room. I'm like, girls, I need full knee flexion. I'm proposing to Brit this morning.”

2. Competing – Together and Apart

• Navigating long-distance & Olympic schedules: Post-Games, they carved time out to be together, but remained busy with press and travel.

  • [29:59] Hilary Knight: “No, we went our respective ways. I went back to Seattle, Brit came back to Salt Lake, and then the New York trip...”

• Supporting each other as athletes: Both reflect on the unique stress and joy of watching their fiancée on the world stage.

  • [45:47] Julie: “What is it like watching each other compete in the Olympics?”
  • [46:00] Brittany: “For the majority of that [gold medal hockey] game, I did not have a good feeling... Hillary scores with less than two minutes to go. I scream probably louder than I’ve ever screamed in my life.”
  • [47:05] Hilary: “I get really stressed and anxious... there’s nothing like cheering on someone you love so deeply…”

3. Making and Breaking Olympic History

• Hilary’s record-breaking gold medal game:

  • [36:52] Hilary Knight: “I just love scoring goals, so I just want to score as many as I can... there's a lot of outside noise about records...but I want our team to be cemented, that legacy, like, boom, done.”
  • [37:44] Brittany Bow (on Hilary’s style): “You had the whole tournament to break this record, but she wants to wait until the gold medal game to tie the game with less than two minutes left to send it into overtime.”

• Processing being at the end of their Olympic careers:

  • [38:45] Hilary: “I processed a lot of it before... my whole goal going into this Olympics...was just to embrace everything and to not hold on too tight... but more like, wow, I have so much gratitude.”

• Brittany’s perspective after tough Olympic finishes:

  • [40:10] Brittany: “Each time I looked up there and saw a number four, I can honestly say I was filled with more joy and love... knowing that everybody who had been a part of my journey, my family, friends, Hillary, got to watch me race.”

• Brittany’s selfless act at Beijing 2022: Giving up her race spot so teammate Erin Jackson could compete – leading to historic gold.

  • [42:02] Brittany: “I would relinquish my spot and give her my position in the 500 meter... And she went on to not just win... but became the first Black female to win an individual Olympic gold medal at the Winter Olympics.”

  • “To me, it was not... I didn’t even give it a second of thought. It was just the right thing to do.” — [44:54] Brittany Bow

4. Women’s Sports – The Momentum Shift

• Shifting tides in women’s sports media: The hosts discuss the growth and remaining gaps in coverage.

  • [20:53] Julie Foudy: “So up until 2019, media coverage of women’s sports was just 5% of all sports coverage... by 2022, it had tripled to 16%... but audiences are growing, game attendance is rising, sponsorship deals are increasing.”

• How to support women’s sports:

  • Show up, talk about it, buy from supporting brands, and create family and community traditions around women’s games.
  • [22:00] Abby: “We need to learn how to celebrate women... Bring your kids to sporting events, to women’s sporting events, also talk about it...”

• Reflections on legacy and the future: Hilary wants to keep growing hockey, even dreaming of women-led sports ownership.

  • [61:34] Hilary Knight: “I want to stay in the sport... ultimately I would love to have an all women’s ownership group... that’s the end goal.”

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the drive for gold and legacy:

  • “We just broke the mold on how hockey’s played at the highest level. And unapologetically showing up as ourselves is, you know, the least that we can do. And I feel like America felt that.” — [58:29] Hilary Knight

• On transferring Olympic pressure into memories:

  • “I would try to, like, get...my mind a little bit to be like, hey, how are you going to feel? This is your last Games... my whole goal going into this Olympics... was just to embrace everything and to not hold on too tight...” — [38:45] Hilary Knight

• On sportsmanship and friendship:

  • “To me, that was just the right thing to do. I’ve been given so many opportunities in my life, and...I had all the faith in her, and she... went out there and did it.” — [44:54] Brittany Bow on giving up her Olympic spot

• On future dreams:

  • “I would love to own a team and do it with fellow amazing women.” — [62:05] Hilary Knight

Party Poppers: Couples Quiz (Fun Highlights)

(begins ~[64:42])

• Who’s more competitive? Brittany
• Who’s the better trash talker? Brittany: “I did grow up playing team sports...a lot of my trash talk from my basketball days.” — [65:15]
• Who would win a straight-line skating race? Brittany (no contest)
• Who’s more likely to forget an anniversary or a birthday? Hilary (“It was bad,” she admits. [70:14])

Timestamps for Important Segments

• [30:45 - 34:41]: Hilary’s proposal story: the Olympic Village, torn MCL, family surprise.
• [36:52 - 37:44]: Breaking Olympic scoring records and gold medal pressure.
• [42:02 - 44:54]: Brittany’s act of sportsmanship – giving up her Olympic spot.
• [45:47 - 47:05]: The experience of watching each other compete.
• [61:34 - 62:05]: Hilary’s future vision: women’s ownership in hockey.
• [64:42 - 71:04]: Party Poppers quiz—revealing humorous and heartwarming moments about the couple’s dynamic.

Podcast’s Original Tone

The episode shines with playful banter, good-natured teasing, and the supportive energy of teammates and legends. The conversation is unfiltered, heartfelt, and humor-filled, as the hosts and guests speak openly about the rewards and costs of elite sports, the quirks of enduring love, and the dreams that still lie ahead.

For Listeners Who Missed It

"Gold, Love, and the Olympics" is a rare, behind-the-scenes look at two icons at their peak—giving listeners both motivation and laughter, and reminding everyone exactly what women’s sports can be when athletes, fans, and media all rally together. If you want to understand how history is made—and who is making it—this episode is pure gold.

For more, follow @welcometothepartyshow and join the “Party People” movement to keep leveling up women’s sports.