IOC: ‘Still a lot of work to do’ Before 2026 Olympic Winter Games

The Olympic Games Executive Director has admitted that there is “still a lot of work to be done” ahead of the 2026 Olympic Winter Games in Milan-Cortina next month, but expressed his confidence that everything would be ready on time.

In an online media press conference, Christophe Dubi said he could not deny that “a lot of finishing touches” still have to be carried out at venues such as the Sliding Centre in Cortina (scheduled to host the bobsleigh, skeleton and luge events) and the PalaItalia Santa Giulia ice hockey arena ahead of the Opening Ceremony on February 6 at Milan’s San Siro Stadium.

Dubi clarified that a large part of the remaining work at the ice hockey arena was “not complex” and had nothing to do with systems such as electricity, timing and scoring. Instead, it would involve the concourse areas, locker rooms, additional temporary tents and hospitality sections, with 1,600 workers on hand to make sure the venue is ready for all spectators.

Despite starting late on the ice hockey arena and the complexity of the project, he said “there is no doubt it will be ready and we are very confident.”

As part of the roundtable event with journalists, IOC President Kirsty Coventry also answered questions on a range of topics:

On The Protection of The Female Category at Olympic Games

“The working group is considering everything,” she said. “There have been no conclusions and we will still be working on it after Milan-Cortina. Nothing is finalized or decided yet.”

On Growing Geopolitical Tensions

Coventry admitted that she had not had any “formal communication” with the White House and President Donald Trump in the wake of his comments on Greenland and the recent military strike on Venezuela.

“We have seen the formal announcement of President Trump’s representatives at the Games so we look forward to welcoming the Vice President (JD Vance) and his team to Milan-Cortina,” she said.

With regards to the 2028 Olympic Summer Games in Los Angeles, Coventry said that conversations with the organizers in L.A. were progressing “really well”, adding that “conversations right now are very positive and are all moving in the right direction.”

On Esports

In October, the IOC announced that it had canceled its 12-year agreement with Saudi Arabia to host the Olympic Esports Games. The first event had been scheduled to be held in Riyadh in 2027 but the IOC said that it would instead develop an alternative approach to the Games and pursue a new partnership model.

“It was never an issue of comfort or not comfort,” said Coventry. “It was really a question of regrouping and right at the beginning of the Pause and Reflect process in June, we could already see that there were multiple views coming from the entire movement. It gave us the opportunity to be very clear on what we want moving forward and both parties agreed.

“We’re on a good track forward and I think this time has also given the movement better time to understand.”

On Maintaining Olympic Values and The Olympic Truce

In light of ongoing geopolitical tensions around the world, Coventry said that “it is not just our job but our duty” to understand the changing landscape, insisting that they were “keeping a pulse to ensure the relevance, meaningfulness and importance of the Games remain at their peak.”

“We will work extremely hard to protect the Olympic Games, and the platform it has because it showcases how we could live,” she said. “We have over 90 National Olympic Committees taking part, all respecting each other. It is important to protect our values and continue to ensure these are acknowledged.”

On Sustainability

The 2026 Olympic Winter Games will be hosted by the cities of Milan and Cortina d’Ampuzzo, making use of 15 event venues across four clusters in Northern Italy that span an area covering 8,495 square miles. Such distances will make this Games one of the most geographically complex in its history.

“We’ve got to find a balance between sustainability and making decisions for sustainable reasons, and the balance of experience for fans, NOCs and athletes,” said Coventry. “I think we made the right decision to have a more dispersed Games, but it has added additional complexities for media, transport, IOC, OBS and NOCs. At the end of the Games, we will be able to look at all these things and maybe come up with a cost to see what it would have looked like if we hadn’t had this discipline.

“It’s a much greater conversation but we are seeing that it’s not just a simple answer. It’s going to be a positive thing because it will allow us to adjust and realign for the future. We’re more sustainable, we have fewer new venues, venues that are trusted by athletes because they’re world class. We need to find some way of measuring these complexities and then balance them.”

On The Games’ Double Cauldrons

Earlier this week, organizers of the 2026 Olympic Winter Games in Milan-Cortina unveiled ambitious plans for an Opening Ceremony that will be held in four locations across Northern Italy and will include two cauldrons, underscoring the widespread nature of the upcoming Games. The Games’ unique double cauldrons will be in public spaces and will be lit simultaneously in Milan’s Arco della Pace and in Cortina d’Ampezzo’s Piazza Dibona.

Coventry said that it had been “very emotional” to light the Olympic Flame in Ancient Olympia and to watch it go around Italy in the build-up to the Games.

When asked about former Olympic champions being left out as torchbearers for celebrities, she said that the torch relay is about “including everyone from all walks of life” and that she hoped that everyone could feel “inspired and proud” of the relay.