Winston Tang

Winston Tang
Personal information
National teamGuinea-Bissau
Born (2006-07-07) 7 July 2006
Oregon, United States
Sport
SportAlpine skiing

Winston Tang (Chinese: 唐寧希; born 7 July 2006) is an American, Taiwanese, and Bissau-Guinean alpine skier. He was the first person to represent Guinea-Bissau at the Winter Olympics, in the men's slalom event at the 2026 Winter Olympics.

Early life and education

Winston Tang was born on 7 July 2006 in Oregon, United States,[1] to Thomas Tang and Penny Tang; his older sisters are Emma Tang and Calcy Tang.[2] Both Thomas and Calcy have represented Chinese Taipei in alpine skiing, Thomas at the 1988 and 1992 Winter Olympics[3] and Calcy at the FIS Alpine World Ski Championships 2021.[4] Growing up in Park City, Utah,[5][6] Winston learned how to ski at the age of two and began competing at the age of eight. He studied at the Winter Sports School in Park City, Utah.[5]

Career

Tang's father, a businessman, began to look for investment opportunities in 2022 in Guinea-Bissau's cashew industry.[5] Through this, he met several government and non-government authorities, and participation in the Winter Olympics was mentioned during one of the dialogues. An interlocutor noticed this and recommended the creation of the Winter Sports Federation of Guinea-Bissau in order for the nation to qualify for the Winter Olympics.[7][5] Around this time, Winston Tang started to compete for Chinese Taipei in international competition.[8] The federation was founded in February 2024 and was made an associate member of the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) in June 2024.[7]

Tang changed his sporting nationality to American and began to compete under the auspices of U.S. Ski & Snowboard.[8] The Winter Sports Federation of Guinea-Bissau had no registered athletes. In 2025 however, the Bissau-Guinean government's ministers voted to grant Tang Bissau-Guinean nationality through his father's connection to the nation[a] to allow him to represent the nation at the 2026 Winter Olympics, and Tang changed his sporting nationality to Bissau-Guinean in June 2025 upon approval by the FIS.[5][10] His first competition representing the nation was at an FIS Entry League men's slalom race held at Ski Dubai.[11][12]

He was awarded an Olympic Scholarship by the International Olympic Committee to assist with his preparations for the Winter Games.[1] Through the basic quota, Guinea-Bissau was eligible to send one male alpine skier to the Games,[13] and Winston was selected. He trained in Bosnia and Herzegovina.[5] During the 2026 Winter Olympics opening ceremony and closing ceremony, Tang was the flag bearer for the nation.[14][15][16] He participated in the men's slalom event, but did not finish.[1]

Notes

  1. ^ Individuals can be granted Bissau-Guinean nationality if they have an affiliation to the country.[9]

References

  1. ^ a b c "Winston TANG". Milano Cortina 2026 Olympics. Retrieved 8 February 2026.
  2. ^ "Taking it to the startup slopes". University of Utah. Retrieved 8 February 2026.
  3. ^ "Tang Wei-Tsu Biographical Information". Olympedia. Archived from the original on 22 June 2024. Retrieved 8 February 2026.
  4. ^ "Men's Giant Slalom Official Results" (PDF). International Ski and Snowboard Federation. 19 February 2021. Archived (PDF) from the original on 19 June 2024. Retrieved 8 February 2026.
  5. ^ a b c d e f Barata, Pedro (3 February 2026). "Winston Tang, o guineense do Utah que vai aos Jogos Olímpicos à boleia do caju" [Winston Tang, the Guinean from Utah who's going to the Olympic Games thanks to cashew nuts.]. Tribuna Expresso (in Portuguese). Archived from the original on 7 February 2026. Retrieved 8 February 2026.
  6. ^ Weaver, Sydney (19 January 2026). "Park City Nation to represent Utah at 2026 Olympics". KPCW. Archived from the original on 31 January 2026. Retrieved 8 February 2026.
  7. ^ a b "The year when snow sports came to life in Guinea-Bissau". International Ski and Snowboard Federation. 4 November 2024. Archived from the original on 17 September 2025. Retrieved 8 February 2026.
  8. ^ a b Blijboom, Luuk (2 February 2026). "Van Benin tot Pakistan: maak kennis met de olympische buitenbeentjes in Milaan" [From Benin to Pakistan: Meet Milan's Olympic outsiders]. Nederlandse Omroep Stichting (in Dutch). Archived from the original on 4 February 2026. Retrieved 8 February 2026.
  9. ^ Manby 2016, pp. 7–9.
  10. ^ "FIS Council Meeting, 12th & 13th June 2025 Summary Minutes" (PDF). International Ski and Snowboard Federation. p. 10. Archived (PDF) from the original on 15 October 2025. Retrieved 8 February 2026.
  11. ^ "Winston Tang". International Ski and Snowboard Federation. Retrieved 8 February 2026.
  12. ^ "Ski Dubai Entry FIS - Men's Slalom". International Ski and Snowboard Federation. 4 November 2025. Retrieved 8 February 2026.
  13. ^ "Alpine Skiing quotas list for Olympic Winter Games 2026". International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS). Archived from the original on 17 April 2025. Retrieved 28 December 2025.
  14. ^ "Winston Tang Biographical Information". Olympedia. Retrieved 8 February 2026.
  15. ^ "Milano Cortina 2026 Closing Ceremony: full list of flagbearers for every nation". Milano Cortina 2026 Olympics. 22 February 2026. Retrieved 22 February 2026.
  16. ^ Moore, Casey L.; Bowers, Rachel G (22 February 2026). "Olympics closing ceremony highlights: Milano Cortina Games wrap up in style". USA Today. New York City, New York, USA. Retrieved 22 February 2026.

Bibliography

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