Olympic rings at the ice stadium in Cortina d'Ampezzo: the main arena of the 1956 Games is hosting the curlers this time around
Image: Keystone
Proven venue for the alpine men: the Stelvio in Bormio
Image: Keystone
Just over the Swiss border: snowboarders and freestyle skiers compete for medals in Livigno
Image: Keystone
Biathlon Mecca in South Tyrol: the arena in Antholz has been renovated and expanded for the Olympics
Image: Keystone
Cross-country skiing tradition: the Olympic village for Nordic athletes is being built in Val di Fiemme
Image: Keystone
Still a cause for concern: the Santa Giulia ice stadium is being completed at the last minute
Image: Keystone
Olympic rings at the ice stadium in Cortina d'Ampezzo: the main arena of the 1956 Games is hosting the curlers this time around
Image: Keystone
Proven venue for the alpine men: the Stelvio in Bormio
Image: Keystone
Just over the Swiss border: snowboarders and freestyle skiers compete for medals in Livigno
Image: Keystone
Biathlon Mecca in South Tyrol: the arena in Antholz has been renovated and expanded for the Olympics
Image: Keystone
Cross-country skiing tradition: the Olympic village for Nordic athletes is being built in Val di Fiemme
Image: Keystone
Still a cause for concern: the Santa Giulia ice stadium is being completed at the last minute
Image: Keystone
The Olympic Games in Italy are building on decentralization - just as Switzerland has in mind for 2038. As little new construction as possible is to be built, with proven competition venues being used instead.
27.01.2026, 05:01
27.01.2026, 06:33
SDA
The Olympic Games in northern Italy are not only a return to Europe, but also a new philosophy. After three games of gigantism in Sochi, Pyeongchang and Beijing, for which almost all of the competition venues were newly built, the focus is now on existing facilities. With Milan/Cortina, two host cities have been awarded the contract for the first time. In four years' time, it will be a region for the first time with the "French Alps", while Switzerland is hoping to be the first country to host the event in 2038. The coming weeks will also be a kind of dress rehearsal to see how well the decentralized concept works.
There are six so-called "clusters" in total. The transportation routes will be long, from Milan to Cortina d'Ampezzo it will take around five hours by car and six hours by train and bus, depending on the traffic situation. However, most of the competition venues are tried and tested and well known to the athletes.
Milan: ice hockey, figure skating, speed skating
The majority of ice sports take place in Italy's largest metropolis with an agglomeration of around six million people. The newly built large ice hockey arena Santa Giulia, which may not be completely finished, is causing some concern. This raises questions about the quality of the ice and the planned spectator capacity of 11,800 seats, but it will definitely be played. The second field hockey stadium Rho (5800 seats) and the arenas for figure skating and short track (11,500) and speed skating (7500) are ready. The main part of the opening ceremony, which will be spread over four venues on February 6, will take place in the San Siro soccer stadium.
Cortina: women's skiing, curling, ice channel
Cortina d'Ampezzo, which already hosted the Olympic Games once in 1956, is the host of the women's ski races, curling and the ice channel sports of bobsleigh, luge and skeleton. The alpine center Tofane with its spectacular downhill course between the rocks of the Dolomites is well known to female ski racers. They compete here every year in the World Cup, and the World Championships were held here as recently as 2021. The finish arena can hold 7,000 spectators, the Olympic curling hall can accommodate 3,000 and the Eugenio Monti Sliding Center is expected to hold 5,500. It remains to be seen whether all the work will be completed, but to the surprise of almost everyone, the 1750-metre-long ice track was ready for use in a record time of thirteen months and has received a lot of praise from the athletes.
Antholz: Biathlon
The organizers also include Antholz in the Cortina cluster, but the small branch of the Puster Valley is more than an hour away. Antholz is perhaps the biathlon Mecca par excellence, having hosted the World Championships six times. At the last one, in 2020 just before Corona, a total of 165,000 fans flocked to South Tyrol over twelve days of competition. The finish stadium has been renovated and can hold 19,000 spectators.
Bormio: men's skiing
As with the women, the male skiers are also returning to a familiar venue. The speed races on the dreaded Stelvio are a tradition between Christmas and New Year. It is considered one of the most challenging downhill runs in the World Cup. The World Championships have already been held twice in Valtellina, in 1985 with Pirmin Zurbriggen as double world champion and in 2005 without a single Swiss medal. There is room for 7000 spectators in the stands.
Livigno: ski freestyle, snowboard
Livigno is the biggest question mark next to the ice rink in Milan. There were no test competitions for the freestyle skiers and snowboarders. Known as a duty-free paradise just over the border in the Engadine, the resort hosts all the snowboard and freestyle competitions and can accommodate 8400 spectators.
