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Milano Cortina Winter Olympic Games start with two cauldrons lit simultaneously
Athletes from around the world marched in the parade of nations at the opening ceremony, which was spread across four different locations in an Olympic first.
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Prabhjot Paul Singh - Fri, 06, Feb 2026
- 21:50 EST
- 9
Milano Cortina 2026. / Milano Cortina
Each edition of the Olympic Games is unique and different from the previous ones. Continuing that tradition, Milano Cortina saw two cauldrons lit simultaneously as the 2026 Winter Olympic Games got off to an impressive start in a spectacle of color, music and technology.
Athletes from around the world marched in the parade of nations at the opening ceremony, which was spread across four different locations in an Olympic first. There was an enormous cheer at San Siro, as well as in Livigno, where flag bearers Mikaël Kingsbury and Marielle Thompson led Team Canada onto the stage. India, a novice in winter sports, had Kashmiri youth Arif Mohammad Khan (alpine skiing) as its flag bearer. Though the International Olympic Committee (IOC) has been trying to ensure gender equity at the Games, nearly two dozen of the 90 participating nations have no female athletes.
When the last Summer Games were held in Paris, the opening ceremony moved out of a walled stadium and onto a river. After France, Italy has sought to carry forward that experiment, taking the ceremony to wider audiences while relying on existing infrastructure rather than building new venues. Some venues this time were originally meant to host Winter Olympic events nearly eight decades ago but could not because of World War II.
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The 2026 Milano Cortina Games will be watched closely as Norway, the top nation in the last three Winter Olympics, faces stronger challenges from both within Europe and the United States. Norway has won 148 gold, 134 silver and 123 bronze medals in previous Winter Games. The United States follows with 114 gold, 121 silver and 95 bronze medals, while Germany is close behind with 105 gold, 97 silver and 65 bronze. Canada is fifth overall with 77 gold, 72 silver and 76 bronze medals. India is yet to win its first Winter Olympic medal.
The face of the Olympic Games is changing. Asian nations such as South Korea, China and Japan are emerging but remain far behind their European and North American counterparts.
The Milano Cortina Games are also the first in history to be held under an IOC president from Africa. Kirsty Coventry, a five-time Olympian swimmer, is the first woman to serve as president of the IOC. In her first opening ceremony address, she said, “The Olympics remind us we can choose respect.”
“When we see an athlete stumble and find the strength to rise, we are reminded that we can do the same,” Coventry said in Milan. “When we see rivals embrace at the finish line, we are reminded that we can choose respect.”
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Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli delivered a rendition of “Nessun Dorma” as the Olympic flame was carried through San Siro. Italy’s President Sergio Mattarella officially declared the Games open from the presidential box.
To conclude the ceremony, two cauldrons were lit simultaneously: one at the Arco della Pace monument in Milan and the other at Piazza Angelo Dibona in Cortina. The gold, spherical cauldrons symbolize the sun and pay tribute to geometric designs inspired by Leonardo da Vinci’s knots.
Long-track speed skating legend Enrico Fabris passed the torch to ski racer Alberto Tomba and alpine skier Deborah Compagnoni, who together lit the Milan cauldron. Alpine ski racer Sofia Goggia lit the cauldron in Cortina.
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