The Winter Olympics returns to Italy for the first time in two decades. From the fashion capital of Milan to the dramatic peaks of Cortina d’Ampezzo, the Milano Cortina Games – the first to be co-hosted by two cities – will stretch across northern Italy blending world-class winter sport with a strong sense of history and ambition.
Sixteen sports and more than 110 gold medals await, from the raw speed of alpine skiing and bobsleigh to the tactical endurance of biathlon and cross-country. Alpine fans will once again be drawn to Mikaela Shiffrin, still redefining excellence across the technical disciplines.
Figure skating returns with its familiar blend of artistry and pressure, led by the American phenomenon Ilia Malinin, whose boundary-pushing jumps continue to reshape the sport, while Team GB hope that Lilah Fear and Lewis Gibson grasp their opportunity to win Britain’s first figure skating medal since Jayyne Torvill and Christopher Dean in 1994.
Speed skating and its short-track form, where Italy’s home hope Arianna Fontana remains a dominant force, offer drama measured in hundredths of a second. Ice hockey brings physicality and heated rivalries (if you know, you know), with Canada the perennial favourites, and curling – yes, still with the brooms – will remind casual viewers, under the guidance of Team GB’s Bruce Mouat, that precision can be just as gripping as power.
