After an unconventional COVID-era Games in Beijing 2022, the Winter Olympics is back for its 25th edition and we can’t wait to see the action unfold. Taking place in Italy from 4th-22nd February 2026, the Milano Cortina Winter Olympics will be the first winter Olympics held in Europe in 20 years!
If you are a lover of winter sports and Olympic action, then keep reading for all the information you need to know about the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games in this ultimate guide, including a breakdown of the schedule, how to watch and top medal contenders.
Where is the Next Winter Olympics?
Held in Italy, the 2026 Winter Olympics will be the most widespread Winter Olympic Games to date. For the first time, the 2026 Winter Olympics will have dual-host cities: the vibrant city of Milan and the Alpine resort town of Cortina d’Ampezzo. In addition to these two main hubs, events will take place across several top Italian ski resorts, including Livigno and Bormio in Alta Valtellina, Anterselva (Antholz) in South Tyrol and Tesero and Predazzo in Val di Fiemme.
Cortina d’Ampezzo, nicknamed “the Queen of the Dolomites,” which also hosted the Winter Olympic Games in 1956, will be the venue for women’s Alpine skiing, while the men’s Alpine skiing will take place in Bormio on the famous Stelvio run – one of the steepest and most difficult downhill courses in the world! Livigno will host the snowboarding and freestyle events and Milan will host ice skating and ice hockey. See below for a full location-event breakdown.
Milano Cortina 2026 – Venue & Sport Breakdown:
- Milan: Ice Hockey, Figure Skating, Short Track Speed Skating, Speed Skating
- Cortina d’Ampezzo: Alpine Skiing (Women’s), Curling, Bobsleigh, Skeleton, Luge
- Bormio: Alpine Skiing (Men’s), Ski Mountaineering
- Livigno: Snowboarding, Freestyle Skiing
- Val di Fiemme (Tesero & Predazzo): Cross-Country Skiing, Ski Jumping, Nordic Combined
- Anterselva (Antholz): Biathlon
- Verona: Closing Ceremony
When is the Next Winter Olympic Games?
The Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games will take place from 4th-22nd February 2026. The official opening ceremony will take place on 6th February, however, there will be two days of competition preceding this. The official closing ceremony will take place on 22nd February, following 19 days of Winter Olympic action.
February offers cold temperatures and peak snow conditions in the Italian Alps and is one of the best times of year to ski in Europe, making it an excellent month to host the Winter Olympics.
What Events Will Be in the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics?
There will be 116 medal events at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics across 16 winter sport disciplines, which fall into three categories: snow sports, ice sports and sliding sports.
The 2026 Winter Olympics will feature eight new events, including the highly anticipated debut of ski mountaineering, which will have three events (men’s sprint, women’s sprint and mixed relay). Other new additions include: men’s and women’s dual moguls in freestyle skiing, a women’s large hill individual in ski jumping and mixed team events in skeleton and luge.
Winter Sport Disciplines and Events at the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Games:
Snow Sports
- Alpine Skiing
Events: Downhill, Super-G, Giant Slalom, Slalom, Alpine Combined. - Cross-Country Skiing
Features equal race distances for men and women for the first time, including 50 km classical races. - Biathlon
A combination of Cross-Country Skiing and rifle shooting. - Ski Jumping
Athletes perform jumps from a specially designed ramp. - Nordic Combined
A combination of Ski Jumping and Cross-Country Skiing. - Freestyle Skiing
Includes Aerials, Moguls, Dual Moguls, Ski Cross, Halfpipe, Slopestyle. - Snowboarding
Events: Halfpipe, Slopestyle, Big Air, Parallel Giant Slalom, Snowboard Cross and Mixed Team Snowboard Cross. - Ski Mountaineering (New for 2026)
Debuting with Men’s Sprint, Women’s Sprint and Mixed Relay events.
Ice Sports
- Figure Skating
Events: Men’s Singles, Women’s Singles, Pairs, Ice Dance, Team Event. - Speed Skating
Long-track races over various distances. - Short Track Speed Skating
Races on a smaller rink, featuring 500m, 1000m, 1500m and relays. - Ice Hockey
Men’s and Women’s tournaments. - Curling
Men’s, Women’s and Mixed Doubles events.
Sliding Sports
- Bobsleigh
Events: Two-Man, Two-Woman, Four-Man and Women’s Monobob. - Luge
Events: Men’s Singles, Women’s Singles, Men’s Doubles, Women’s Doubles and Mixed Team Relay. - Skeleton
Men’s, Women’s and Mixed Team events.
What is the Schedule for the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics?
With 116 events taking place across 19 days, there’s a lot of action scheduled – so mark your calendars! Check out some of the key dates of popular events and their locations below so that you don’t miss your favourite Winter Olympic sports.
Milano Cortina 2026 Key Dates & Highlights:
February 4, 2026: Two days before the official start, the Games commence with the first mixed doubles curling matches at the historic Cortina Olympic Stadium.
February 6, 2026: The Opening Ceremony will take place at San Siro Stadium in Milan. The day also features the preliminary rounds of women’s ice hockey and the beginning of figure skating competitions.
February 7, 2026: First medal events, including:
- Men’s Downhill: Stelvio Slope, Bormio
- Men’s Snowboard Big Air: Livigno
- Women’s Skiathlon: Val di Fiemme
- Men’s Luge Singles: Cortina d’Ampezzo
- Women’s Ski Jumping: Predazzo
- Women’s 3000m Speed Skating: Milan
February 13, 2026: Women’s Snowboard Cross Finals and Men’s Snowboard Halfpipe Final in Livigno.
February 15, 2026: Mid-Games peak with nine gold medal events, including women’s giant slalom, men’s cross-country relay and men’s dual moguls.
February 19, 2026: The ski mountaineering sprint events will take place in Bormio.
February 21, 2026: Busiest day of the Games with 10 gold medals awarded. Highlights include:
- Figure Skating Gala: Milan
- Men’s 50km Cross-Country Skiing: Val di Fiemme
- Women’s 12.5km Biathlon Mass Start: Anterselva
- Men’s Ski Cross Finals: Livigno
- Men’s Ice Hockey Bronze Medal Match: Milan
February 22, 2026: Final day featuring:
- Men’s Ice Hockey Final: Milan
- Women’s Curling Final: Cortina d’Ampezzo
- Four-Man Bobsleigh Final: Cortina d’Ampezzo
- Closing Ceremony: Arena di Verona
For a detailed day-by-day schedule, including specific events and times, please refer to the official Milano Cortina 2026 Competition Schedule.
How to Watch the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics?
As the first Winter Olympic Games in Europe in 20 years, now is your chance to watch the action unfold live! Ticket sales commenced on 8 April and are being allocated on a first-come, first-served basis – so don’t miss out! You can buy tickets from the official ticketing website: tickets.milanocortina2026.org or the official hospitality website: https://hospitality.milanocortina2026.org/en.
If you are looking to tune into the action from home, the official Olympic broadcast rights holders for the UK are the European Broadcast Union and Warner Bros Discovery, so you will be able to stream every event live on Discovery+ through TNT Sports. If you don’t have Discovery+, you will be able to watch several events live on the BBC across BBC One, BBC Two and BBC iPlayer.
How to Get to the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics?
With events spread across multiple venues at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, your travel route will depend on which competitions you’re attending. For events in Milan, international travellers can fly directly into Milan Malpensa (MXP) or Milan Bergamo (BGY) airports. If you’re heading to Cortina d’Ampezzo, the nearest major airport is Venice Marco Polo (VCE). Several other nearby airports also offer convenient access to the mountain venues, including Innsbruck (INN) in Austria and Zurich (ZRH) in Switzerland.
Italy’s high-speed Trenitalia rail network will link Milan with mountain venues, including Bormio, Livigno and Val di Fiemme. Anterselva (Antholz), the biathlon venue in South Tyrol, can be reached via train to Bolzano, followed by regional transfers. Shuttle services will connect train stations to venues, and park and ride schemes will also be in place for those who are self-driving.
Athletes to Watch at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics
More than 3,500 athletes from 93 countries will be competing for 195 medals in the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics. The last Winter Olympics in Beijing saw Norway top the medal table with 16 golds, ahead of Germany and the USA. With the return of the Winter Olympic Games in February, the world’s top winter sports athletes will be going all out for gold. Athletes to watch include:
- Mikaela Shiffrin (USA, Alpine Skiing), two-time Olympic gold medalist who continues to dominate Alpine skiing and recently achieved her 100th World Cup victory.
- Marco Odermatt (Switzerland, Alpine Skiing), the reigning Olympic giant slalom champion and strong favourite for the giant slalom, super-G and downhill events.
- Chloe Kim (USA, Snowboarding), who aims to become the first snowboarder to win three consecutive Olympic golds in halfpipe.
- Eileen Gu (China, Freestyle Skiing), two-time Olympic champion in freestyle skiing.
- Oriol Cardona (Spain, Ski Mountaineering), reigning World Cup champion and leading hope for Spain in ski mountaineering as it makes its Olympic debut.
Who Will be Representing Team GB at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics?
Team GB is gearing up to send one of its strongest teams ever to the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, with a host of standout athletes across multiple disciplines. Leading the charge in Alpine skiing is veteran slalom star Dave Ryding, along with rising talents Billy Major and Laurie Taylor, who have produced some excellent World Cup results in the last season. Teenage snowboarding sensation Mia Brookes, freestyle skier Kirsty Muir and snowboard cross champion Charlotte Bankes also bring serious medal potential on the slopes.
In the ice sports, Matt Weston is a top contender in skeleton following his World Championship success, while the bobsleigh and curling teams continue to be strong medal hopefuls, aiming to build on Team GB’s historic performances in recent Games.
When is the 2026 Winter Paralympic Games?
The 2026 Winter Paralympic Games will be held from 6-15 March 2026, following the Winter Olympics in the iconic settings of Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy. Athletes from around the world will compete in six sports: alpine skiing, biathlon, cross-country skiing, para ice hockey, snowboarding and wheelchair curling. This will mark the first time Italy has hosted the Winter Paralympics.
Feeling Inspired?
Feeling inspired to sharpen your skiing skills or give skiing or snowboarding a go? Whether you are a complete beginner or seasoned skier, Maison Sport makes it easy to find your perfect instructor. Simply select your resort, dates and discipline of choice, then choose from a range of experienced, highly rated instructors who will elevate your ski holiday experience and take your skills to the next level. If you fancy learning to ski from an Olympian, you can even book lessons with Graham Bell, former Olympic skier and familiar face from BBC Ski Sunday.
Don’t forget to follow Maison Sport on Instagram and subscribe to our YouTube Channel for live updates and to catch all the action as the Games unfold.
