As the Winter Olympics get ready to kick off on Thursday, four Penn Staters will represent two countries on the international stage.
One current Penn State student, one alumna and two coaches head to Beijing for this year’s games. Before things get underway, here’s a quick look at who’s competing and when they get started.
Jessica Adolfsson
Linkoping, Sweden native Jessica Adolfsson will represent Team Sweden at this year’s games. Adolfsson is a former Penn State women’s hockey player who graduated in 2021. At 5-foot-9, Adolfsson was a defender at Penn State for three seasons. She became the second Nittany Lion defender to earn first-team All-CHA honors during the 2020-21 season.
Adolfsson became Penn State women’s hockey’s first-ever student-athlete representative in the Olympics after she was named to the roster on Jan. 19. Adolfsson will play her first game when the Swedes take on Japan at 3:40 a.m. EST on Thursday.
Allison Coomey
Penn State women’s hockey assistant coach Allison Coomey will serve as a coach for Team USA during this year’s games.
Coomey is a team scout for the U.S. in its quest to win gold. Her team’s first game will be against Finland at 8:10 a.m. EST on Thursday.
Alex Dawes
Penn State men’s hockey director of operations Alex Dawes will also serve as a coach for this year’s Olympics while representing Team USA men’s hockey.
Dawes is the video coach for Team USA. His team will begin the Olympics with a game against China at 8:10 a.m EST on Feb. 10.
Kaitlin Hawayek
Penn State even has current students competing this year. World Campus student Kaitlin Hawayek will compete for Team USA along with partner Jean-Luc Baker in ice dance.
Hawayek is competing in the Olympics for the first time after serving as an alternate for the 2018 games. The prelims for ice dance will begin with rhythm dance at 10:35 p.m. EST on Thursday, while free dance is scheduled for 9:30 p.m. EST on Sunday.
