The flame for the 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics has officially landed in Rome, sparking celebrations across Italy! 🔥 After a historic handover at Athens’ Panathenaic Stadium – where the first modern Olympics began 130 years ago – the flame arrived Thursday aboard an ITA Airways flight, guarded in a sleek lantern.
Tennis star Jasmine Paolini, fresh off her 2024 Paris Summer Games gold medal win, helped carry the flame alongside organizers. 🎾 "I feel honored. It's an incredible emotion," she said as crowds cheered.
Starting Saturday, a massive 63-day torch relay will blaze through all 110 Italian provinces, covering 12,000 km with 10,001 torchbearers. The journey kicks off at Rome’s marble-clad Stadio dei Marmi and culminates at Milan’s San Siro Stadium on February 6 next year for the opening ceremony – Italy’s first Winter Games hosting since Turin 2006!
This Friday, the flame lights a cauldron at President Sergio Mattarella’s Quirinale Palace, with IOC President Kirsty Coventry attending. 🏛️ "A precious treasure," declared organizing chief Giovanni Malago during the Athens handover, as Italy prepares to write its next Olympic chapter.
