Milan-Cortina 2026 is not just the next big sporting event on Italy's calendar: it is a homecoming. The Winter Olympics will return to Italian soil from February 6 to 22, 2026, bringing the five rings back to the Alps, the Dolomites, and major cities. It is a journey that brings together memory and future, tradition and innovation, as few other times have done.
Italy has a special relationship with the Winter Olympics. It all began in Cortina d'Ampezzo, in Veneto, in 1956, when the Dolomites became the global stage for snow and ice sports for the first time. Those Olympics marked a historic transition: they were the first to be broadcast on television in several European countries and established Cortina as the “queen” of winter resorts. Italy presented itself with pride, showing the world a country that was definitively emerging from the post-war period and looking ahead.
Fifty years later, in 2006, it was Turin's turn to take up the baton. The Piedmont Olympics were a success in terms of organization and audience, but above all, they were a powerful engine of urban transformation. Turin changed its face, opened its mountains to the world, and took on a new international identity. On the sporting front, there were also great emotions, especially with Giorgio Di Centa's gold medal in the 50 km cross-country skiing event.
In 2026, the scenario will be even more diverse. Milan-Cortina will be a “widespread” Olympics, bringing together cities and Alpine regions, historic slopes, and state-of-the-art facilities. Milan will host the indoor competitions and the opening and closing ceremonies, Cortina will return to the center of snow sports, while locations such as Livigno, Bormio, and Val di Fiemme will complete the mosaic. It is an ambitious project that also aims to leave a sustainable legacy, an inevitable theme when it comes to major events.
On the sporting front, Italy will field a talented team with more than one serious contender for the podium. At the top of the list is Federica Brignone, the queen of Italian alpine skiing, who will be Italy's flag bearer at the opening ceremony. In Milan-Cortina, even though she is coming off a long and very traumatic injury, she could win a medal in her last great Olympic adventure, backed by an already extraordinary career and consistency at the highest level in giant slalom and super-G.
Alongside her, all eyes will be on another alpine skiing star, Sofia Goggia: downhill is her home turf, and Cortina is a slope she knows like few others.
Among the men, alpine skiing dreams with Dominik Paris, especially in the speed events, while in cross-country skiing, Italy can count on a solid group that looks to Federico Pellegrino as its figurehead. It is not certain that 2026 will be his last dance, but it will certainly be a huge opportunity, with the home crowd cheering him on.
There is also a lot of attention on short track, a discipline that has brought continuous satisfaction in recent years. Arianna Fontana, Italy's most decorated Winter Olympic athlete, aims to write yet another chapter in her already historic career, while behind her a new generation is growing up, ready to take up her mantle.
In the men's events, Italy can count on Pietro Sighel in short track, who grew up in the shadow of a great family tradition, and Davide Ghiotto in speed skating, one of the strongest athletes internationally in the 10,000 meters.
The Italian biathlon team is also competitive, especially with Dorothea Wierer and Lisa Vittozzi, two champions capable of fighting for the podium without difficulty, and in the men's field with Tommaso Giacomel, who has now surpassed his status as a promising youngster to establish himself as one of the athletes capable of consistently aiming for the top positions.
In general, Italy will be represented at the Olympics by a large and competitive group, capable of making its mark in many different disciplines.
In curling, for example, the benchmark remains the pair formed by Amos Mosaner and Stefania Costantini, reigning Olympic champions in mixed doubles and an inevitable reference point for all their opponents.
Looking at the freestyle disciplines, Italy can count on Michela Moioli in snowboard cross and Simone Deromedis in ski cross, both ready to play their cards on the snow of Livigno.
Although no one is saying it openly, the focus is on a historic goal: to try to improve on the haul from Lillehammer in 1994, when Italy ended its most successful Winter Olympics with 20 medals, seven of which were gold. An ambitious goal, but not out of reach.
Once the Olympic cauldron is extinguished, attention will shift to the Winter Paralympics, scheduled for March 6-15, 2026. Here too, Italy will arrive with high ambitions, backed by a growing tradition and athletes capable of inspiring far beyond sporting results.
