More than 3500 athletes from 93 countries will be competing for 195 medals at the Milan-Cortina Games. Three countries will be making their Winter Olympic debuts at the 2026 Games, the African nations of Benin and Guinea Bissau along with the United Arab Emirates.

The Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics kicked off on Friday with an unprecedentedly widespread opening ceremony that was certainly more somber that the Paris 2024 opener but still delivered a classy spectacle and projected an overall elegance that reflects its Italian spirit.

The 2026 Winter Olympics will take place on Feb. 6 in Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, and it will be the first time the Games will be jointly hosted.

The 2026 Winter Olympics were under way in Milan, Italy, with U.S. Vice President JD Vance and second lady Usha Vance looking on. Team USA is expected to come out into San Siro soon.

An unprecedented four-site, dual-cauldron Winter Olympics opening ceremony replete with references to Italian icons and culture has officially kicked off the Milan Cortina Games, as the sports spectacle returns to a nation that last hosted the event 20 years ago.

The 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics’ early events continued on day -1 ahead of Friday's opening ceremony. After opening the games on day -2 as the first event to start competitive play, curling continued with wins for the U.

The Olympic opening ceremony ran 3 1/2 hours, an hour longer than its scheduled run time. It was a spectacular event, one that had a blend of Italian music, food, fashion, culture and a lot more. Catc

South Africa are set to be the best-represented African country at the 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics (Feb. 6-22), with five athletes expected to participate among a total 13 from the continent.