Minnesota State University - Mankato Athletics

Mavericks and the Olympic Games Nina Tikkinen (women's hockey)
A native of Salo, Finland, Nina Tikkinen returned from the 2010 Winter Olympics held in Vancouver with hardware after she and her Team Finland teammates downed Sweden by a 3-2 margin in the bronze medal game.

Tikkinen, who chalked up 21-29--50 in 102 careeer games with Minnesota State from 2007-2011, had two goals and 13 shots on goal in five games in Vancouver. She also was a member of Team Finland at the 2014 Olympics in Sochi, Russia, where she played in six games (0-0--0) in helping her team to a 3-3-0 record.









  A veteran of international play for her home country of Sweden, Emilia Andersson came back from the 2010 Winter Olympics with 0-1--1 in five games as Team Sweden earned a fourth-place finish. She became a two-time Olympian when she played in the 2014 Winter Olympic Games in Sochi, Russia. The Stockholm native had 0-1--1 in six games with Sweden finishing fourth in the tournament. She made her third Olympic appearance when she captained Sweden in Pyeongchang in 2018.

Andersson's career at Minnesota State spanned the 2008-13 seasons where she had 11 goals and 39 assists for 50 points in 138 games with the Mavericks. Upon graduation she held school records for single-season points by a defenseman (3-17--20 in 2012-13) and career points by a defenseman. She was named Minnesota State's Rookie of the year in 2008-09.









  A forward for Team USA at the 2010 Winter Olympics, David Backes and his American teammates earned a silver medal in Vancouver. Backes, who had 1-2--3 in six games in Vancouver as Team USA constructed a 5-1 mark, became a two-time Olympian in 2014 when he suited up for the Red, White and Blue in Sochi, Russia. Team USA finished fourth in Russia and Backes totalled 1-3--4 in six games.

The Blaine, Minn., native, had 46 goals and 73 assists in 115 games in his three seasons with Minnesota State from 2003-06.











Emmanuel Matadi (men's track & field)
A sprinter on the Minnesota State men's track & field team in 2014-15, Emmanuel Matadi competed for his home country of Liberia at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, the 2021 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, and the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.

The St. Paul (Minn.) Johnson High School grad set two indoor records in his one season with the Mavericks (60m/6.66 & 200m /21.10), to go along with outdoor marks in the 100m (10.19) and the 4x100m relay (40.15). His season culminated in a pair of NCAA Division II outdoor track & field championships in the 100m and 200m.

In Rio, Matadi posted a time of 10.31 in round one of the 100-meter dash event to rank 43rd and he placed fifth in his 200m first-round heat with a time of 20.49. His time placed him 30th overall.

In Tokyo, he turned in a time of 10.25 in his first-round 100m heat to rank 35th.




Cheyenne Rova (women's swimming)
Former Minnesota State swimmer Cheyenne Rova competed for Fiji at the Tokyo Summer Olympic Games in 2021.

Rova, who joined the Mavericks prior to the start of the 2015-16 season, was a four-time All-American for Minnesota State, finishing third in the 50 free, third in the 200 free relay, fifth in the 100 free and sixth in the 400 free relay at the NCAA DII national championships as a senior in 2016-17.

Rova turned in a time of 27.11 in her 50 free heat (ranked third in the heat) in Tokyo and did not advance to the semi-finals.









Rebekah Kolstad (women's hockey)
A forward on the Minnesota State women's hockey team for two seasons (2017-19), Rebekah Kolstad competed for China at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing.

Kolstad, a graduate of Mankato East High School who played a pair of seasons at the University of North Dakota prior to joining the Mavericks, scored 13 goals and had 11 assists for 24 points in 66 games at Minnesota State. She posted 19-18--37 in 139 games in four seasons of college hockey.

Following her college career, the right-handed shooting forward played two seasons with Shenzhen KRS Vanke Rays in the Zhenskaya Hockey League in Russia before making her Olympic debut in Beijing. She helped China to a 2-2-0 record at the Olympics and in four games played had one assist for one point. Her assist came on the game-tying goal in a 2-1 overtime win over Japan.






Nathan Smith (men's hockey)
A forward on the Minnesota State men's hockey team, Nathan Smith (2019-still active) was a member of the United State's men's hockey team at the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing.

Smith, a Hudson, Fla., native, who was leading the nation in scoring with the Mavericks prior to his assignment with Team USA, had a goal and an assist in four games at the Olympics. His goal was the game-winning goal in a 3-2 U.S. win over Germany on Feb. 13.