Laila Edwards Dreamt of the Olympics at Age 10. Now, She's Making History at the 2026 Winter Games: 'It Was a Matter of Time' (Exclusive)

NEED TO KNOW

• Laila Edwards spoke with PEOPLE about her upcoming debut at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan this February
• She opened up about making history as the first Black woman to make the U.S. women's hockey team for the Olympics and what the feat means to her personally
• The University of Wisconsin star looked back on her childhood on the ice at age three, and when her Olympic dreams became a reality

Laila Edwards is bringing the heat to the ice.

Since age 10, as she watched the U.S. women battle Canada for gold at the 2014 Winter Games in Sochi, the now 21-year-old hockey player had dreams of playing for Team USA in the Olympics.

At the time, Edwards didn't know that she'd go onto make history just over a decade later as the first Black woman to play for the U.S. women's senior national team, and then again one year later when she was became the first Black woman to make Team USA's Olympic hockey team, this time for the 2026 Milan Games.

After her strong play for the senior national team last year, Edwards "knew it was a matter of time" until she made the Olympic team — and history — with her spot in Milan, but the next step was figuring out what to do with her new title.

"I was like, 'Wow, I could take this one of two ways: shy away from it, or try to make a difference,' " the hockey star tells PEOPLE, less than one month away from puck drop in Milan.

"It means everything. I think representation is so important, and role models are important too. So to be that potential role model for someone, it means the world to me," she says. "It's one of the biggest things that motivates me."

Growing up, Edwards idolized Hilary Knight, captain for the Seattle Torrent of the Professional Women's Hockey League and captain for the U.S. women's national ice hockey team. She admired Brianna Decker and Kendall Coyne Schofield, too.

Now, Edward stars alongside Knight and Coyne Schofield on the national team.

"It's so crazy. It's unbelievable. I mean, I was a little kid asking for all their autographs and pictures and fangirling and being so nervous," she tells PEOPLE. "My mom had to do it for me, and now I'm sitting next to them in the locker room and going to the Olympics with them. It's crazy."

While the powerhouse women in hockey are among Edward's "biggest inspiration[s] and role models" in the game, she credits one person in particular who introduced her to the sport and helped her star rise to the height its at today: her dad.

"My dad played hockey growing up," the Ohio native shares, citing her local Cleveland Heights rink as the place where it all began. "He got us into it right away with the goal of us going as far as we could — so far so good!" she jokes, adding, "But yeah, he got us on skates as soon as we could walk."

Edwards, whose parents are Robert Edwards and Charone Gray-Edwards, revealed that they introduced her to figure skating, not hockey, at age three — but it was all for the bigger goal.

"It was a part of my dad's plan all along. I had no idea, but he knew. He was like, 'You're not going into figure skating. It's just to help with hockey,' " she recalls with a laugh. "At the same time, I was doing public skate with hockey skates, so I was on the ice all day every day just because I loved it."

At age five, Edwards pivoted from figure skating to hockey and never looked back.

"I've always been told I was a natural with the stick handling and handling the puck... I don't know if I was so much a natural skater, but I did put a lot of work into skating," she shares, adding, "So I think it just all came together. So yes, I do get that a lot, that I was a natural."

Laila continued her love of the sport at the University of Wisconsin, one of the nation's premier Division I hockey programs, further cementing her path to success. The Red Bull athlete, who is currently in her senior year, has two NCAA championships under her belt.

She describes her typical day at school as "low-key," despite her packed schedule that beings with a session on the ice at 8AM and wraps with homework (with training, recovery, business and social work classes and fueling her body properly in between).

"It's nothing crazy, but sometimes it can be hard to balance," she admits. "But we have such good resources like our advisors, our tutors, I mean, we're set up to succeed, which I think is really important."

With her Olympic debut around the corner, Edwards opened up about the buzz that's brewing on campus ahead of her Team USA debut at the Winter Games, especially amid the increased attention on her in the media.

"I think the more things come up, the more people recognize me, but everyone's just so nice and share a quick 'congratulations' or 'good luck'," she shares with a smile. "It's really special. I think everyone here is respectful and they care... it's just the little things that mean a lot."

Edwards, who's known for her killer slap shots and agile stick handling, shouts out her parents — and siblings Bobby, Colson, Chayla and Britney — for their support to date, noting the emotional and physical obstacles that comes with the sport.

"The sacrifices they've made are the reason I'm here... and it sounds cliche, but it's very true," she says. "I can't even put into words how much money they've put into this and left work early to take me to a game, take me to practice."

"They've also mentally supported me and loved me and took care of me throughout this crazy journey and I can't thank them enough," she adds. "That goes for both my parents and all my siblings, too. They're all my biggest supporters. I literally don't know what I would do without them."

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Between her student-athlete success and Olympic pursuits, Edwards hopes to inspire young players to follow passions of their own.

"I think people should just do what they want and do what they love," she says. "Hopefully they see, especially young players of color, can watch me and say, 'Okay, she made it there, and I can make it there,' even though there's not many people in this sport that look like me."

As for whether this soon-to-be Olympian has gold on the mind in Milan?

"Of course. It's the only thing that's on the mind," Edwards makes clear. "...and pasta and pizza."

Read the original article on People