The Olympics are the pinnacle of athletic and physical achievement, so naturally it takes a lot of blood, sweat and tears for someone to earn the chance to compete. Because of this, many athletes' stories are ones of perseverance, determination and grit and make for an inspiring tale for everyone watching at home.

Las Culturistas' Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang are back with the Two Guys, Five Rings podcast, a collaboration with iHeartRadio and NBC Sports that brings listeners closer to the real stories of the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympic Games, which runs February 6-22.

In a recent episode, Yang and Rogers broke down why these games are a "must-watch" and detailed many of the most notable "characters" to keep an eye on.

"We are really running the gamut of narratives here," Yang said. "There's every kind of story here. We have comeback narratives, Olympic legends in their final act, young stars ready to break out. These athletes could also show up on your favorite competition-based reality shows."

The pair highlighted several athletes to watch for, including figure skaters Ilia Malinin, the "Quad God" who aims to land the first quadruple axel in Olympic history, and Alysa Liu, who previously retired after competing in the 2022 Beijing Olympics at 16 and is making an incredible comeback, as well as Madison Chock and Evan Bates, married ice dancing pair who are hoping to finally score an individual medal in their fourth Olympic games, and Chloe Kim, who at 25 is looking to become "the first snowboarder to win gold at three consecutive Olympics."

Yang and Rogers even had their own medal ceremony of sorts, awarding gold, silver and bronze to the athletes who "really compel us to follow them." Lindsey Vonn, formerly retired alpine skier making a comeback at the 2026 Games, earned bronze, Russian figure skater Adeliia Petrosian got silver for "the juiciness of Russia coming back to skating," and Malinin earned gold for the possibility of watching him land seven quad jumps in his routine.

Follow along as Rogers and Yang highlight the best stories and unheard tales from the 2026 Milan-Cortina Olympics on Two Guys, Five Rings at iHeart.com.

Christopher Cross