Who is Jordan Cowan? Former ice dancer who brings cameras onto Winter Olympics ice, capturing figure skating’s emotional moments

At the Milano-Cortina Winter Olympics, figure skating fans are seeing moments never shown before on television. As skaters finish their routines and emotions take over, a camera now follows them across the rink. The person behind this new view is former American competitive ice dancer Jordan Cowan. Skating alongside athletes with a special camera rig he designed, Cowan records reactions immediately after performances, showing relief, tears, and celebration in real time.Broadcasts traditionally cut away once the music ends, but Cowan calls that period an unexplored part of the sport. Olympic Broadcasting Services introduced the experiment to make coverage more personal. Viewers now see athletes leaving the ice before they reach coaches in the kiss-and-cry area. Cowan’s work has quickly gained attention because it reveals emotions usually hidden from audiences and gives fans a closer connection to the skaters’ experience. ID@undefined Caption not available.ID@undefined Caption not available.Jordan Cowan grew up in Los Angeles and began skating as a child. Speaking to Reuters, he joked that the rink felt special because it had air conditioning while his home did not. His curiosity about the sport led him to train seriously in Michigan, where he competed in ice dance before retiring from competition.After stepping away from skating, he struggled to choose between film and science. He eventually combined both interests. While filming an ice show in Sun Valley for a PBS production, he recorded behind-the-scenes footage using a phone and small stabilizer. Producers later used the shots, impressed by the camera appearing to float across the ice.Since then, Cowan has upgraded his equipment from a phone to cinema-style cameras. He uses manual focus and zoom, believing a skater can anticipate motion better than autofocus systems. His skating skills allow him to follow athletes smoothly without interrupting their performance environment.Cowan says his presence can also comfort competitors during difficult moments. Some athletes told him having another skater nearby makes the experience feel less lonely. He keeps distance so they can process emotions while still capturing the crowd’s reaction.He worked closely with Olympic Broadcasting Services, which also introduced drones and overhead cameras at these Games. For Cowan, the role is meaningful even though he never competed in the Olympics. He hopes his footage becomes part of a long-lasting record of the sport and remains meaningful decades from now.