Ice dancing siblings Maia and Alex Shibutani are continuing to aim for the Olympics after leaving the ice for nearly seven years.
According to Time Magazine, in May 2025, the pair announced that they would be returning to competition with hopes of competing at the 2026 Winter Olympics.
The Shib sibs, as they are affectionately known, have been ice dancing partners for 21 years, Bustle reports. They made a name for themselves when they won the bronze medal at the 2011 World Ice Dancing Champions. Maia was just 16 at the time and Alex was 20.
They made history at the 2018 Winter Olympics, winning a bronze medal in the team event and a bronze medal in ice dancing. They were the first ice dancers of Asian descent to medal at the Olympics.
The siblings took a break after the 2018 Olympics to pursue other ventures, and in 2019, Maia was diagnosed with cancer.
Now in their 30s, Maia and Alex are launching a comeback. In November 2025, they placed sixth at the NHK Trophy competition.
“Being on this journey is what feels like the win,” Maia said in a recent interview with Olympics.com.
Alex says the duo is committed to their return.
“Maia put in so much work — both of us did — not to be in the grind of training every day and competing year to year,” he said in an interview with Bustle. “Part of the joy of being able to step away was to unwind a little bit and not hold ourselves to such high, restrictive lifestyle choices that a lot of elite athletes have to make. To prepare for this season, we really committed ourselves, but we wanted to do it in a very thoughtful, appropriate way.”
Their peers, who are also their fellow competitors, are
“When we heard they were coming back, for me personally it was something I understood because we all know the pull of the Olympic Games,” says Evan Bates, who dances with partner Madison Chock, told Time Magazine. “It’s exciting, and it’s good for the sport.”
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