Italian speed skater slams Team USA with Steph Curry mocking after winning gold medal

Italy’s speed skaters took home team pursuit gold Tuesday with a victory over Team USA, and Andrea Giovannini let them know it.

Giovannini skated on the ice after winning gold and heard Stephen Curry taunt “go to sleep” as he celebrated. Curry famously performed the move when he hit the dagger in the men’s basketball gold medal game against France at the 2024 Summer Olympics.

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Andrea Giovannini gestures after his team won the gold medal in the final of the men’s team speed skating race at the Winter Olympic Games, in Milan, Italy, Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)

“On the last lap we were in control,” he said via the New York Post. “And I was just waiting for that finish line to emulate Steph.

“[It’s] emblematic of having cold blood.”

Giovannini admitted he planned the celebration with his teammate days before the final race and was worried he would “forget it.”

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Team Italy in the final of the men’s team pursuit speed skating race at the Winter Olympics in Milan, Italy, Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)

The moment was brief, and a photographer captured the gesture as he skated on the ice. Giovannini’s teammates Davide Ghiotto and Michele Malfatti also helped lead Italy to gold. They finished with a time of 3:39.20 in the team pursuit.

Team USA’s Ethan Cepuran, Casey Dawson and Emery Lehman finished with a time of 3:43.71 and took the silver medal. The team set a world record for the race in November in Salt Lake City with a time of 3:32.49.

Team USA, Casey Dawson, Emery Lehman and Ethan Cepuran celebrate winning silver in the men’s team pursuit on February 17, 2026. (Reuters/Yves Herman)

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It is the second Olympic medal for the trio. They won a silver at the 2022 Beijing Olympics with Joey Matia.

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