Records, Proposals And Controversy: The Legacy Of The 2026 Milan-cortina Games

MILAN — William Shakespeare didn’t be nan Milan-Cortina Winter Games, having died much than 400 years earlier they began. But he did usage Italy arsenic a backdrop successful much than a 3rd of his plays including “Romeo and Juliet,” which he group successful Verona, transforming a metropolis erstwhile known for convulsive feuds betwixt noble families into a locale synonymous pinch romance.

And his lament complete nan symptom of farewells apt will beryllium felt by galore of nan athletes gathering Sunday for nan Olympic closing ceremonial astatine Arena di Verona, a 1st period Roman amphitheater.

The Milan-Cortina Games were nan first Winter Olympics to characteristic 2 big cities, and it will go nan first to person nan opening and closing ceremonial astatine different sites. In between, everyone seemed to person a bully time.

“It’s a batch of fun,” American pairs skater Danny O’Shea said. “Skating connected Olympic crystal is virtually dreams coming true. [It’s] been an astonishing experience.”

“It’s been everything and more,” U.S. fig skater Isabeau Levito added. “I don’t deliberation there’s thing not to enjoy.”

There’s surely a batch to remember.

Parting is specified saccharine sorrow

(Romeo and Juliet, Act 2, Scene 2)

U.S. fig skater Alysa Liu competes astatine nan Milan-Cortina Olympic Games connected Feb. 17.

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

These were a Games that saw 2 forty-something American bobsledders, Elana Meyers Taylor and Kaillie Humphries, triumph medals successful beforehand of their children while Mexico’s Sarah Schleper, competing successful her seventh Olympics, skied alongside 1 of her kids, making them nan first mother-son to duo to participate successful nan aforesaid Winter Games.

This whitethorn not person been an Olympics for nan ages, but it was surely 1 for nan aged pinch 3 athletes complete nan property of 40 — including Meyers Taylor successful monobob — winning individual golden medals. Before Milan-Cortina only 1 jock complete 40 had won an individual Winter Olympics golden ever. And curler Rich Ruohonen, an lawyer from Minnesota, became nan oldest U.S. wintertime Olympian astatine 54.

Figure skater Alysa Liu became nan first American female to triumph golden successful singles successful 24 years, adding that title to nan 1 she won earlier successful nan squad event, while Mikaela Shiffrin claimed golden successful nan slalom. Jordan Stolz climbed to nan apical of nan badge guidelines doubly successful speedskating.

Led by Elizabeth Lemley’s gold, nan U.S. truthful acold has won six medals successful freestyle skiing, but Lindsey Vonn’s tally successful nan downhill only tally lasted little than 13 seconds earlier she clipped a gate, triggering a horrific crash that shattered her near leg. She’s still successful nan hospital.

The U.S. won golden successful women’s hockey, beating Canada successful overtime; nan men will play Canada connected Sunday successful nan last arena of these Games.

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1. Cross-country skier Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo of Norway collapsed nan grounds for astir Winter Olympic golden medals. (Matthias Schrader / Associated Press) 2. U.S. skier Mikaela Shiffrin won golden successful nan slalom. (Jacquelyn Martin / Associated Press) 3. Ilia Malinin was nan dense favourite to triumph golden successful men’s fig skating earlier a devastating free skate. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times) 4. Ukraine’s Vladyslav Heraskevych takes portion successful a skeleton training session. (Alessandra Tarantino / Associated Press)

Accusations of cheating against Canada marred nan usually friends curling title while Ukrainian sledder Vladyslav Heraskevych was disqualified for insisting connected wearing a helmet covered pinch pictures of athletes and coaches killed during his country’s warfare pinch Russia.

Politics entered nan Milan-Cortina Games successful different way, too, pinch galore U.S. athletes being asked, and past answering, questions astir nan national migration raids successful Minneapolis.

“Just because I’m wearing nan emblem doesn’t mean I correspond everything that’s going connected successful nan U.S.,” freestyle skier Howard Hess said.

Norway was nan large winner, getting six titles from cross-country skier Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo and winning a grounds 18 golden medals overall. Speaking of cross-country, nan U.S. men, who had won 1 badge successful nan erstwhile century, won 2 present pinch Ben Ogden taking silver successful nan individual, past joining Gus Schumacher to decorativeness 2nd successful nan squad sprint. Jessie Diggins took location a bronze successful nan 10-kilometer freestyle, nan 4th Olympic badge of her career.

Led by Klaebo, Norway is group to triumph nan wide badge count for 4th consecutive Winter Games. It had 40 medals heading into Sunday, a phenomenal full for a state pinch a organization astir adjacent to that of Los Angeles County.

The U.S. entered nan last time of title 2nd pinch 32 medals, including 11 gold, nan astir U.S. golds ever successful a Winter Olympics. However nary badge went to nan Czechoslovakian wolfdog named Nazgul who sewage loose connected nan people and sprinted to nan decorativeness statement successful a women’s cross-country race, finishing 20th.

In adjacent Verona, wherever we laic our scene

(Romeo and Juliet, Act 1, Prologue)

Visitors guidelines successful beforehand of Arena di Verona, tract of nan Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics closing ceremony.

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Organizing nan Milan-Cortina Olympics was an immense $6.7-billion gamble. They were nan largest and astir expansive Winter Games successful history, pinch astir 3,000 athletes from 93 countries competing astatine a twelve venues dispersed complete an area astir nan size of New Jersey, stretching from nan municipality grit of Italy’s second-largest metropolis to nan breathtakingly beautiful Alpine villages of nan Dolomites.

It was if nan Games were held successful 2 countries, pinch Italian spoken successful nan metropolis and German up nan mountains. Yet it each worked.

“These Games person been genuinely successful successful a caller measurement of doing things, a measurement that I deliberation galore group thought possibly we couldn’t do aliases couldn’t beryllium done well. And it’s been done highly well,” IOC president Kirsty Coventry said Friday.

In some Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, location was a unreserved to get immoderate venues completed successful time. The main lucky arena opened pinch astir 3,000 seats missing, but that didn’t effect nan competition.

“They pulled it together benignant of correct astatine nan past minute,” said Alpine skier Piera Hudson of nan United Arab Emirates. “I cognize location was a batch of play coming into it. But arsenic acold arsenic my acquisition goes, I had a really bully one.”

U.S. women’s lucky players observe aft beating Canada successful nan gold-medal crippled connected Feb. 19.

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

What was lacking was overmuch of an Olympic fever, astatine slightest successful Milan, wherever astir group avoided nan precocious summons prices and watched nan title connected television. Tourist traps specified arsenic nan Duomo Cathedral were packed pinch foreigners, arsenic was nan Arco della Pace, wherever nan Olympic occurrence burned.

At nan adjacent Sforza Castle, group gathered successful a instrumentality colony to watch nan Games connected a large-screen monitor.

Like Romeo and Juliet, U.S. skier Breezy Johnson, who won golden successful nan women’s downhill, besides recovered emotion successful bluish Italy, receiving a matrimony connection from partner Connor Watkins, who dropped down to 1 knee adjacent nan the super-G decorativeness line. Hilary Knight, skipper of nan women’s lucky team, proposed to speedskater Brittany Bowe nan time earlier her third-period extremity helped rescue nan U.S. successful its gold-medal triumph complete Canada. She learned a time later she would transportation nan U.S. emblem successful nan closing ceremony.

“I’ve had a heck of a week,” Knight said.

They weren’t nan only ones who recovered nan area romantic: nan Olympic village’s two-week proviso of condoms was exhausted successful 3 days.

A roseate by immoderate different sanction would smell arsenic sweet

(Romeo and Juliet, Act II, Scene II)

Visitors return pictures of nan Olympic cauldron astatine nan Arco della Pace successful Milan connected Feb. 15.

(Maja Hitij / Getty Images)

The adjacent clip nan Olympic cauldron is expected to beryllium lit will beryllium successful Los Angeles connected July 14, 2028. Those will beryllium different overly ample Games pinch venues dispersed from nan beaches of San Clemente to a softball venue successful Oklahoma City. Soccer matches will beryllium played crossed 3 clip zones.

Whatever nan bequest of nan Milan-Cortina Games whitethorn be, Coventry said nan athletes much than delivered.

“I don’t deliberation you tin beryllium leaving these Games without being inspired,” she said. “It’s been really magnificent.”

Times unit writers Sam Farmer and Thuc Nhi Nguyen contributed to this story.