Overview
- The opening ceremony is scheduled for 6 February at San Siro, with about 60,000 spectators expected in the stadium and a global broadcast audience.
- Confirmed performers include Mariah Carey, Andrea Bocelli, Laura Pausini, Lang Lang, Pierfrancesco Favino, Sabrina Impacciatore, Matilde De Angelis, Ghali and Cecilia Bartoli.
- The production mobilizes over 1,300 cast members and more than 950 operators, with 500+ musicians, roughly 700 hours of rehearsals, and extensive costume work; two technologically complex cauldrons will be lit and extinguished simultaneously in Milan and Cortina.
- The torch relay spans roughly 12,000 kilometers across all 20 regions and 110 provinces with 10,001 torchbearers, reaching Cortina on 26 January exactly 70 years after the 1956 Winter Games there.
- Local demonstrations along the relay route have been largely peaceful, featuring Palestinian flags, environmental and justice messages, and criticism of arms‑industry sponsorship, with some citing the Olympic Charter’s human‑rights commitments.