Italy has already recorded its best-ever Winter Olympics medal haul, powered primarily by women, as gender parity efforts deliver historic results at Milan Cortina 2026.

MILAN (AP) — This could turn out to be Italy’s best Winter Olympics ever after a record-breaking day on home snow and ice. The host nation picked up six medals on Sunday, the most Italy has ever won in a single day at the Winter Olympics.

Italy's Winter Olympics promised sustainability. But in Cortina, environmentalists warn the Games could scar these mountains for decades.

The Games in northern Italy, which start on Friday, will be spread across 8,500 square miles. Long distances, narrow roads, complex connections and snowfall will make it a logistical nightmare.

CORTINA D'AMPEZZO, Italy (AP) — Soaring arias. Wrenching tragedy. Joyful triumphs. Exotic backdrops. Climaxes often designed to produce tears, sad or otherwise. Perhaps more than anything, the operas that Italians began creating 400 years ago are designed to make you feel.

Overall, Thursday marks one of the more unsettled days this week across the Olympic region — rain in Milan, snow in the mountains, and cooler temperatures throughout. Conditions improve heading into Friday.

Italy set a national Winter Olympics record on Sunday as Federica Brignone's giant slalom gold capped a four‑medal surge that lifted the host nation’s tally to 22.

Two skiers were killed and one more was injured in an avalanche in Courmayeur, a ski resort located about 135 miles from the 2026 Winter Olympics events in Milan, on Feb. 15.