This February, Kristin Della Rovere ‘23 will lace up her skates on the world’s biggest athletic stage, playing hockey for Italy at the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Games.

Della Rovere will be joined on the Olympic ice by fellow Harvard women’s hockey alum Emerance Maschmeyer ‘16, an Olympic gold medalist competing in her second games for the defending champion, Team Canada.

Together, Maschmeyer and Della Rovere are continuing a remarkable Olympic legacy for the Harvard women’s hockey team, as the 2026 Milano Cortina Games mark the eighth consecutive Winter Olympics in which the program has been represented.

During her time in Cambridge, Mass., Della Rovere compiled an impressive hockey résumé. Over the 128 games that she played for the Crimson, the Caledon East, Ont., native tallied 56 goals, 66 assists, and 122 points. As a senior, she wrapped up the regular season schedule as the NCAA leader in faceoff wins with 529 and was ranked 14th in the nation with a .593 faceoff winning percentage.

Now rostered with the Professional Women’s Hockey League’s (PWHL) Toronto Sceptres, Della Rovere has had a long journey to the Winter Games, but is thrilled to make her Olympic debut.

“From the first moment I got recruited from Harvard, I knew I wanted to go there,” Della Rovere said. “Being a top school in academics and athletics really caught my eye.”

Like many other elite female athletes at the time, Della Rovere was determined to commit to a school at which she could set herself up for post-graduate professional success, whether it be in athletics or the workforce.

“When I first decided to play at Harvard, there was no sustainable professional women’s hockey league, so attending a strong school was very important to me,” the Olympian added.

Since it was unclear if there would be a stable professional league for women after graduating, Della Rovere made sure to include academics as one of her priorities.

Della Rovere concentrated in psychology and pursued a pre-medicine track while at Harvard, fully immersing herself in the College’s rigorous academics as well as its competitive women’s hockey program.

“Speaking to current players showed me how special it was before even attending the university,” Della Rovere said. “When I stepped on campus, I knew I wanted to go there. My first conversations with our coaching staff challenged me in a way no other coaches did.”

After excelling in her collegiate hockey career, Della Rovere was selected as the 56th pick in the 10th round of the PWHL’s Inaugural Draft by the Ottawa Charge in 2023. That same year, Della Rovere made the decision to vie for an Olympic roster spot.

Following a stint with the Charge, the Harvard alum took a break from the PWHL to play hockey in Italy and secure her Italian citizenship.

“It was important that I spent eight months (one season) in Italy to be eligible to play for the Italian National Team,” she explained.

Therefore, Della Rovere spent that season competing in the European Women’s Hockey League (EWHL), where she played for the Eagles in Bolzano, Italy. She made an immediate impact on the team, notching 48 points and 22 goals across just 20 games.

After concluding her season in Bolzano, Della Rovere competed in her first world tournament. She helped spur her team to the IIHF Women’s Division I B Championship, where Italy won and was promoted to the Division I A bracket.

In June 2025, Della Rovere and her teammates began to prepare specifically for the upcoming Olympic Games.

“We had a two-week, no-ice training camp in Formia. We spent these two weeks training two to three times a day near the beach,” the Crimson’s former captain explained. “It was our first real test.”

Later in the summer, the Italian team spent another two weeks in northern Italy, where it faced off against Japan and Slovakia to help it prepare for international competition.

In November, the team cranked through another week-long training camp before relocating to Montreal, Canada.

“Our team was centralized in Montreal, Canada, until a week ago, where we had many games and practices. We spent these past months in Montreal not only getting stronger on the ice and off the ice, but also connecting as teammates and staff,” Della Rovere said.

On Jan. 24, Team Italy returned to Italy to train for a week just outside of the Olympic Village.

In just a few days, on Feb. 5, the group stage of the Olympic women’s ice hockey competition will begin.

“I can’t even put into words how special this is. It’s a true honor, and I’m beyond humbled and grateful for this opportunity,” said Della Rovere when asked about her mindset heading into the Winter Games. “To be able to represent my family and my dad and my grandparents is very special to me.”

“To get to experience the Olympics with this group of girls is also so special,” she added.

This year, Della Rovere and her teammates also will have the unique advantage of skating on home ice, as Italy is serving as the host nation.

“To do it on home soil is an experience that not many Olympians get,” Della Rovere explained. “It comes with a sense of pride knowing we have our country in the stands, supporting us.”

She hopes that her team’s performance will help foster a love for women’s hockey in Italy.

“It’s a big opportunity to continue to showcase the talent and dedication of Italian women’s hockey players and continue to grow the women’s game globally.”

Della Rovere and Team Italy will take to the ice on Feb. 5 to face off against France in the Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena.

The team will then continue through its group stage schedule, where it will compete against Sweden, Japan, and Germany on Feb. 7, 9, and 10, respectively.

—Staff writer Isabel C. Smail can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on X at @Isabel_Smail.