And these Games are particularly gigantic.
These are the first Olympic Games to fully adopt the cost-cutting reforms implemented by the International Olympic Committee and primarily use existing venues, which has meant dispersing the Games throughout northern Italy.
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Here’s a look at some of the key numbers ahead of the opening ceremony:
1
The number of new sports in these Games. Ski mountaineering, also known as skimo, is making its Olympic debut. The sport combines uphill sprinting (with boots and skis) and downhill skiing.
2
That’s how many times Italy has hosted the Winter Olympics before: in Cortina d’Ampezzo in 1956 and Turin in 2006. Italy has held the Summer Games once, in Rome in 1960.
8
The number of event locations at the most widespread Winter Games in history. Ice sports will be held in Milan and women’s alpine skiing, curling and sliding events will be held in Cortina, the two main centres. But there will also be competition in Bormio, Livigno, Predazzo, Tesero and Anterselva, and the closing ceremony will take place in Verona.
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13
Number of Russian athletes who will compete as neutral individuals along with seven Belarusians. They are not allowed to compete under their national flag or anthem and cannot participate in the opening ceremony athlete parades.
19
The number of days of competition.
39
The age difference (in years) between the oldest athlete on Team USA at the Games and the youngest. Curler Rich Ruohonen will set a Winter Olympic record for Team USA at age 54, while the youngest member of the team is 15-year-old free skier Abby Winterberger.
41
Lindsey Vonn ages into her fifth Olympic Games after a sensational return to ski racing. If he wins what would be his fourth Olympic medal, he would surpass Frenchman Johan Clarey, who was also 41 when he won silver in the downhill in 2022, to become the oldest Olympic alpine skiing medalist in history.
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100
How old is San Siro this year? The stadium that will host the opening ceremony will be torn down in the coming years after a new stadium is built next to it.
116
The number of medal events at the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics. If that seems like a lot, it’s not even close to the Summer Games. There will be more than 350 medal events at the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.
2,900
The number of athletes competing in the Milan Cortina Games. The United States will have the largest presence with 235 athletes, the largest team ever at the United States Winter Olympics. Host nation Italy will have 196.
18,000
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That is the number of volunteers who will help at the Games. Around 900 of them will work behind the scenes at the opening ceremony.
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AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics