Organisers confirm most venues ready for 2026 Winter Olympics, with Santa Giulia arena construction remaining the primary concern.
WITH exactly 100 days remaining until the 2026 Winter Olympics, organisers express confidence that nearly all venues will be fully prepared for athletes and spectators.
The winter sports spectacle returns to Italy for the third time this February, marking western Europe’s first hosting since the 2006 Turin Games.
This edition follows a 20-year absence from winter sports’ traditional heartland, during which Vancouver, Sochi, Pyeongchang and Beijing faced criticism over environmental impacts and massive expenditures.
Italy’s deputy prime minister Matteo Salvini emphasised that these Games belong to and benefit their host regions during Wednesday’s 100-day countdown event in Milan.
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The Milan-Cortina Olympics carry an estimated final cost of 5.2 billion euros, significantly lower than the three previous Winter Games.
Competitions will spread across northern Italy from February 6 to 22, stretching from Milan to the Dolomite mountains in the northeast.
Milan will host ice sports while Bormio and Cortina stage alpine skiing events.
Biathlon competitions move to Anterselva and Nordic skiing to Val di Fiemme in the Dolomites, with Livigno in the Italian Alps welcoming snowboarding and freestyle skiing.
Organisers prioritised using existing infrastructure, resulting in only two completely new venues among the thirteen competition sites.
Both Olympic villages in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo reached completion earlier this month alongside Cortina’s controversial bobsleigh track.
The Santa Giulia arena in Milan remains under construction by a private operator and won’t undergo testing until less than a month before the opening ceremony.
Santa Giulia represents the primary organisational challenge after missing its December test event when the under-20 world championships relocated to Rho.
Milan-Cortina organising committee president Giovanni Malago acknowledged the tight schedule while expressing confidence in meeting all deadlines.
SimiCo CEO Fabio Saldini echoed this optimism by promising everything will be ready for what he termed unforgettable Games.
Organisers unveiled the victory podiums on Wednesday as Italian Olympic committee president Luciano Buonfiglio set a national medal target of nineteen.
Buonfiglio aims to surpass Italy’s seventeen medals from Beijing 2022 while approaching the country’s record twenty medals from Lillehammer 1994.
Italy secured only two gold medals three years ago through curling mixed doubles and short track speed skater Arianna Fontana. – AFP
