Bundle up, people: the 2026 Milano-Cortina Winter Olympics officially begin right now. Longtime Olympics impresario Marco Balich, who returns as director, has curiously described his vision of today’s festivities as a “somber” affair, a tonal pivot presumably meant to match … well, you know, everything that’s been going on in the world. Still, this is Milan, so expect fashion to loom large, including a tribute to Giorgio Armani, who died last September. Performers providing the ceremony’s music include Mariah Carey, Andrea Bocelli, and Chinese classical pianist Lang Lang, who returns to the Olympics following a 2008 performance at the Beijing Opening Ceremony. (He also carried the Olympic torch in 2012.)
Today’s spectacle looked a little different from festivities past: The most geographically dispersed Winter Games ever, the Milano-Cortina events will be spread out across 8,500 square miles (a byproduct of the soaring cost of hosting, which now favors sprawling multi-city bids). The Opening Ceremony itself was split between Milan’s San Siro Stadium and venues in Livigno, Predazzo, and Cortina, complete with dual torch lightings at two separate locations. Unwieldy! But the real question, as always, was who will steal the show -- and what Milan’s version of going full heavy-metal guillotine looks like.
