Winter Olympics 2026 - touring Italian venues across big distances

The Winter Olympics kicked off with a spectacular opening ceremony in a soccer temple, the San Siro in Milan. Inter and AC Milan usually play their home games here. Almost 80,000 spectators attended, but parts of the ceremony also happened at other competition venues.

Ski mountaineering, or skimo, is making its Olympic debut at the Dolomite resort of Bormio, some 200 kilometers from Milan. Alpine skiers will also compete for medals here. Men are taking to the slopes in Bormio, while women compete in Cortina d'Ampezzo.

The competition venues are spread over a distance of more than 250 kilometers, which poses logistical problems, especially for coaches, support staff and service personnel. The highlight of the slope in Cortina is the Tofana Schuss, a steep section with a 64% gradient, where skiers reach their top speed. It is used for downhill and super-G races.

The biathlon venue in Antholz, about 60 kilometers north of Cortina, has a long winter-sports tradition. It has been a World Cup site for nearly 50 years and was renovated for the Olympic Games at a cost of about €58 million ($68 million). The venue now includes an underground layout, an indoor shooting range, more space for media and reporters, as well as a new floodlighting system.

Some 80 kilometers west of Cortina is the town of Predazzo in the Fleim Valley, or Val di Fiemme, where the ski jumpers and Nordic combined athletes will compete. While women also compete in ski jumping, the Nordic combined event is male-only.

A few kilometers further into the Val di Fiemme from Predazzo are the challenging Olympic cross-country ski trails. Here, cross-country skiers and Nordic combined athletes tackle the steep climbs and technically demanding descents in the race for medals and top positions.

The ice rink where the curling competitions will take place is a classic old-school venue. It was originally built for the 1956 Winter Olympics in Cortina and has since been modernized. Back then, it hosted ice hockey and figure skating — and has even been used as a location for a James Bond movie.

There was much debate over whether to give the 1956 bobsled track a complete makeover or build a new one. It was decided to construct a new track, but no construction company was able to take on the job until January 2024. Now, the track is complete and has been praised by athletes — even though It will be only be fully finished after the competition.

The ice hockey arena in Milan won’t be completed until after the Olympic Games, though it is already open. A total of 14,700 spectators will watch the tournament in a partially finished venue. Additionally, games will be held at the temporary Milano Rho Ice Hockey Arena, which has a capacity of 5,800.

The second ice hockey arena is located at the Milan fairgrounds. Another repurposed exhibition hall will host the speed skating events. The 400-meter ice oval is also temporary and will be dismantled after the Olympic Games.

The Forum di Milano, a multipurpose arena in the suburb of Assago, has hosted many sporting events, including basketball games, tennis tournaments and even a hockey World Championship. During the 2026 Olympic Games, the Forum will be the venue for figure skating and short track speed skating.

At the end of the event, spectators and athletes and their teams will have to travel once more. The closing ceremony will not take place in Milan or Cortina d'Ampezzo, but in the over 2,000-year-old Arena of Verona. This will mark the first time the Olympic Games wraps up at a UNESCO World Heritage site — hopefully with good weather, as the arena has no roof.

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