When the 2026 Winter Olympics kick off in Milano Cortina in February, among the many competitors will be four athletes with ties to Colgate.
Those four are all women’s hockey players — three alumnae and another who will join the Class of 2030 next fall.
Kristyna Kaltounkova ’24, who for five seasons was a force for the Raiders, and was drafted No. 1 overall by the New York Sirens in the 2025 PWHL Draft, will represent Team Czechia.
Kayle Osborne ’24, a dynamic goaltender at Colgate and now a starter on the Sirens, will suit up for Canada. She is one of three goalies to make the roster for a team that has won Olympic gold five out of seven times.
Joining Kaltounkova will be Noemi Neubauerova ’22 and Linda Vocetkova, who will begin her collegiate career next fall after committing to Colgate.
Colgate Women’s Hockey head coach Stefan Decosse said he feels immense pride for seeing four athletes represent the Raiders.
Not only did Decosse coach Kaltounkova, Osborne, and Neubauerova, he was part of the coaching staff that brought them to Colgate when they were teens looking for a place to play college hockey. He also recruited Vocetkova.
“I had the privilege of recruiting all four of those players, and throughout that process, it’s a fairly personal one,” he said. “You learn all about who they are, get to know their families, and get to hear of their ambitions and where they want to go in the sport. All four strove to be Olympians.
“As a coach, it gives me an immense sense of pride, for our program but also our institution at Colgate.”
All four athletes have represented their homelands in different tournaments. But only Neubauerova has competed in the Olympics before. In 2022, she played in the Winter Games in Beijing. It was Czechia’s first ever appearance in the tournament for women’s hockey.
But only Neubauerova has competed in the Olympics before. In 2022, she played in the Winter Games in Beijing. It was Czechia’s first ever appearance in the tournament for women’s hockey.
Prior to Neubauerova, two other former Raiders have played in the Olympics. Nicole Gass '16 competed for Switzerland in the 2018 Olympics. Liv Altmann '19 also played for Switzerland in the 2014 and 2018 Winter Games.
Having four Colgate representatives in the Olympics shows the University is a platform for student-athletes to develop and reach the big tournament, Decosse said.
“Our aim is to be a program that attracts serious student-athletes, serious students and athletes,” he said. “We want folks who believe Colgate is a program that will be a platform for their development in their pursuit to reach the pinnacles of what they aspire to do on the ice, while also acknowledging the power of a Colgate degree. In short, success on the ice and in life.”
At Colgate, Kaltounkova finished with 111 goals and 122 assists for 233 points, good for second in program history. She majored in educational studies and earned a master’s degree in teaching as a Raider. Now with the Sirens, she has picked up where she left off as an elite goal-scorer. As of Jan. 19, she was second in the league in goals with eight, one goal behind the league leader.
Osborne finished her Colgate career with a record of 61-20, a 1.64 goals against average and a .927 save percentage. Splitting time with Hannah Murphy ’25 — who is also in the PWHL — Osborne helped Colgate become one of the top teams in the nation each year. Now in her second year with the Sirens, she has taken over the starting duties. She was second in the league with wins with seven, one behind the top spot, as of Jan. 19.
At the Olympics, she will be playing for a Canadian team that has no shortage of talent, raising the competition for every roster spot.
At the Olympics, she will be playing for a Canadian team that’s loaded with talent at every position. Every player vying for a spot on the team faces intense competition.
“It speaks volumes for Kayle to reach that height of success at her young age,” Decosse said. “It is fairly remarkable, specifically in that position where it’s even more competitive. There are only three spots.”
Neubauerova played 115 games for Colgate in four seasons, scoring 26 goals and recording 25 assists. She was named the team’s most improved player in 2019-20. She was drafted by the Toronto Sceptres of the PWHL in 2024 and is now playing in Sweden’s professional league.
Decosse said he found Vocetkova through contacts in Europe and from watching film online. She was captain of Czechia’s U18 team last year. She’s playing in her third and final season in Sweden, which is a contact league.
Decosse said Vocetkova is a perfect fit for his program and will blend well in the Colgate community. He said she’s a talented, hard-working, and physical forward with high character.
"Linda is going to be fun to watch," he said. “We are thrilled to have her.”
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