Key Takeaways:
- The 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan Cortina will be the most spread out in Winter Games history, with six Olympic villages across 22,000 square kilometers in Northern Italy.
- The lack of a central campus will make it challenging for Canada’s chef de mission, Jennifer Heil, to attend multiple events in a day.
- The Canadian Olympic Committee (COC) is working to unite the team despite the dispersed locations, using social media tools and other innovative methods.
- The opening ceremony will be held simultaneously in Milan’s San Siro Stadium and the mountain clusters of Cortina, Livigno, and Predazzo, allowing athletes to participate from their respective locations.
- The International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) new motto of "reduce, reuse, and recycle" has led to a more sustainable Games, but also presents challenges for team unity.
Introduction to the 2026 Winter Olympics
The 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan Cortina are set to be the most spread out in Winter Games history, with six Olympic villages across 22,000 square kilometers in Northern Italy. This poses a significant challenge for Canada’s chef de mission, Jennifer Heil, who wants to attend as many events as possible to cheer on the country’s athletes. Heil joked that she will have to "Mary Poppins it around the Games" to make it to all the venues, highlighting the difficulty of navigating the vast distances between locations.
The Dispersed Nature of the Games
The 2026 Winter Olympics will not have a central campus, with events spread across multiple locations, including Milan, Cortina d’Ampezzo, Bormio, Livigno, and the Fiemme Valley. This means that Canadian athletes will be dispersed across a wide geographic area, making it difficult for them to meet and interact with each other. For example, curlers will be in Cortina, while snowboarders will be in Livigno, over 200 kilometers away. The COC is working to address this challenge by using social media tools and other innovative methods to unite the team and create a sense of Canadian presence in each location.
Uniting the Team
The COC has been working on uniting the team despite the dispersed locations, with CEO Dave Shoemaker stating that they have been preparing for this challenge for years. The COC plans to use social media tools, as well as other methods, to create a sense of team unity and presence in each location. This includes setting up a Canada Olympic house celebration series that will rotate between Cortina, Livigno, and Milan on four separate days. The COC hopes that this will create excitement throughout the Olympic clusters and provide a sense of community for athletes and fans.
The Opening Ceremony
The opening ceremony will be held simultaneously in Milan’s San Siro Stadium and the mountain clusters of Cortina, Livigno, and Predazzo, allowing athletes to participate from their respective locations. This will enable more athletes to participate in the ceremony than if they had to travel to a central location. The COC believes that this will be a unique and exciting experience for athletes and fans, and will help to create a sense of unity and celebration across the different locations.
The IOC’s New Approach
The IOC’s new motto of "reduce, reuse, and recycle" has led to a more sustainable Games, with Milan Cortina using 85% of existing infrastructure to reduce construction. While this approach has its benefits, it also presents challenges for team unity and athlete experience. Canadian freestyle halfpipe skier Brendan Mackay noted that while he supports the idea of a more sustainable Games, it will be more challenging to feel like a united team. However, he is still excited to watch other events and hopes to make it to the closing ceremonies in Milan.
Athlete Perspectives
Canadian athletes are aware of the challenges posed by the dispersed nature of the Games, but are also excited to compete and be part of the Olympic experience. Ski cross racer Reece Howden noted that it is unfortunate that everyone cannot be centralized, but understands that it is not possible given the geography of the region. Abigail Strate, a ski jumper, is looking forward to being part of the Canadian team in the Fiemme Valley and staying connected with other athletes through social media and technology.
Conclusion
The 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan Cortina will be a unique and challenging experience for Canadian athletes and the COC. While the dispersed nature of the Games presents difficulties, the COC is working to unite the team and create a sense of Canadian presence in each location. With the use of social media tools, innovative methods, and a revised Canada Olympic house celebration series, the COC hopes to create a sense of unity and celebration across the different locations. As the Games approach, Canadian athletes are excited to compete and be part of the Olympic experience, despite the challenges posed by the spread-out nature of the events.
