Italy's Winter Olympics: Record-Breaking 24+ Medal Haul, Wierer's Emotional Farewell, and Sunday's Historic Closing Ceremony

Italy's Winter Olympics concluded with a historic medal haul and dramatic final-day events, as the nation's athletes wrapped up their home Games in Anterselva and Cortina before Sunday's closing spectacle at Verona's ancient Arena. The tournament, running from February 6 to 22, has seen Italy shatter its previous Olympic winter record of 22 medals set at Lillehammer 1994, with the tally surpassing 24 by the closing weekend.

Why This Matters:

• Historic achievement: Italy has secured its best-ever Winter Olympics performance on home snow, cementing the investment in mountain sports infrastructure.

• International spotlight: The closing ceremony at the UNESCO-listed Arena di Verona will broadcast Italian culture to an estimated global audience of millions, particularly in Eastern Europe and Asia.

• Safety concerns emerge: Multiple crashes in bobsled and short track have highlighted the risks inherent in high-speed winter sports, with at least one athlete requiring surgery.

• Medal standings shift: The Netherlands overtook Italy in the final medal table after claiming gold in speed skating's mass start event.

Biathlon's Queen Bids Farewell in Anterselva

Dorothea Wierer, the most decorated Italian biathlete in history, closed her competitive career on home ice with a fifth-place finish in the women's mass start at Anterselva. Despite accumulating two penalty laps at the shooting range, the 35-year-old from South Tyrol managed to stay within striking distance of the leaders, finishing just 30 seconds behind the winner.

France claimed both top spots on the podium. Oceane Michelon took gold despite her own double shooting error, edging out compatriot Julia Simon (who incurred one penalty lap) and the Czech Republic's Tereza Vobornikova. Italy's other biathlon hope, Luisa Vittozzi—who had earlier delivered the nation's first-ever Olympic gold in the discipline—struggled with four missed shots and finished 18th.

Wierer's career spanned four Olympic Games and produced an extraordinary legacy: two overall World Cup titles (2018-19, 2019-20), making her the first Italian to achieve that feat, plus 12 World Championship medals including four golds. She recorded 17 individual World Cup victories and accumulated 88 career podium finishes across all competitions. Her influence extended beyond statistics: she transformed biathlon from a niche pursuit into a mainstream sport across Italy.

Klaus Hoellrigl, head coach of the Italy Biathlon Federation, paid tribute immediately after Wierer's final race. "Dorothea Wierer has made history in Italian biathlon. She's a legend for everyone, but for our squad she represents something unique—if we're here today with the attention we have, it's largely thanks to her," he stated. Hoellrigl noted that Italian biathlon struggled when Wierer arrived as a teenager, adding that she was "one of the first to shoot very fast and brought spectacle to this sport."

What This Means for Italian Winter Sports

Wierer's retirement leaves a substantial void, though Hoellrigl expressed confidence in the emerging generation. "Her legacy won't be easy—she knew how to move both on and off the field. But we have other athletes who can perform well and have great personality," he said.

Regarding the overall Milano Cortina results, the coach voiced satisfaction with Vittozzi's gold and the mixed relay's silver, though acknowledged that "expectations were high after recent World Cup performances. Biathlon is like that." He also confirmed that Tommaso Giacomel, who withdrew from a race earlier in the week, "is fine, absolutely fine, and the rest will be assessed calmly."

The broader Italian biathlon program appears secure despite Wierer's departure, with a pipeline of young talent—inspired by her two decades of dominance—now competing at elite international level.

Crashes Mar Final Days of Competition

The concluding events at Cortina's Sliding Centre and the short track oval were punctuated by serious accidents that underscored the inherent dangers of high-velocity winter disciplines.

Bobsled Overturn Halts Four-Man Event

The second heat of the four-man bobsled was suspended for 20 minutes following a dramatic rollover involving the Austrian crew. Pilot Jakob Mandlbauer became trapped inside the capsule after the sled overturned, requiring emergency responders to immobilize and extract him. His three teammates exited the wreckage independently. The incident marked the first major bobsled crash on the newly reconstructed Eugenio Monti track during these Olympics, a facility that had undergone extensive testing before the Games.

The Austrian crash was not isolated: French and Trinidad teams also experienced rollovers during the bobsled program, though most crew members walked away without serious injury. The 1,749-meter track, featuring 16 curves and top speeds approaching 145 km/h, had undergone extensive testing with 60 athletes before the Games following concerns about its readiness.

Polish Short Track Skater Requires Facial Surgery

A multi-athlete pile-up during the women's 1,500-meter short track quarterfinals left Poland's Kamila Sellier with serious facial injuries. The skater was struck by a competitor's blade, causing a cheekbone fracture that necessitated immediate surgical intervention. Medical staff transported her from the ice on a spinal board as a precautionary measure.

Konrad Niedźwiedzki, head of the Polish delegation, told local media that Sellier's eye was spared despite the severity of the impact. Surgeons opted to reopen the wound to assess bone damage more precisely following a CT scan that revealed the fracture. Sellier remained hospitalized under observation following the procedure. The Polish team issued well-wishes via social media channels.

Italian short track legend Arianna Fontana was also involved in the same crash but managed to advance to the semifinals and final, ultimately placing fifth in the 1,500-meter event won by South Korea's Kim Gilli.

Speed Skating Finale Shifts Medal Table

Francesca Lollobrigida, the Italian speed skating sensation who had already claimed two gold medals at Milano Cortina, narrowly missed a podium spot in the mass start event that closed the long-track program. The 33-year-old finished fourth, unable to secure what would have been a historic triple gold.

The Netherlands' Marijke Groenewoud took the victory, a result that proved decisive in the overall standings. That gold medal allowed the Dutch team to leapfrog Italy in the final medal count, pushing the hosts down to fourth place overall. Norway dominated the Games with a record 17 gold medals, surpassing any single nation's gold tally at a Winter Olympics.

Italy's final medal tally surpassed 24, comfortably breaking the previous national record of 22 set three decades ago. Individual standouts included Federica Brignone and Lollobrigida with their double golds, plus Sofia Goggia and Lisa Vittozzi with multiple podium appearances. Unexpected bronze medals in figure skating and snowboard, combined with strong performances in luge, rounded out the host nation's best-ever winter showing.

Impact on Residents and Visitors

For Italians who followed the home Olympics, the fortnight delivered both pride and poignancy. The success of local heroes competing on familiar terrain—particularly Wierer's emotional farewell in Anterselva—created moments that transcended sport. The South Tyrolean venue, normally a quiet mountain resort, hosted capacity crowds for biathlon events, generating an economic windfall for regional hotels, restaurants, and transport services.

The accidents, however, serve as a reminder of the risks athletes accept in pursuit of Olympic glory. Italian sports medicine infrastructure handled multiple emergencies smoothly, with immediate on-site care and rapid hospital transfers demonstrating the preparedness of local medical teams.

Federico Tomasoni, who won silver in ski cross, offered a moving reflection during his medal ceremony at Casa Italia in Livigno. The athlete, whose fiancée Matilde Lorenzi died in a training accident in October 2024 at Val Senales, spoke of fate and perseverance. "Destiny leads life to certain situations. Without ever giving up or surrendering, sooner or later you can dream big like today. We're beginning to realize now that we've done something great, especially considering what I've been through. Everyone takes great pleasure in seeing these stories of sport and of life," Tomasoni said.

Sunday's Grand Finale at the Arena

The Milano Cortina 2026 closing ceremony begins at 20:30 CET on Sunday at Verona's 2,000-year-old Roman amphitheater, marking the first time a UNESCO World Heritage Site has hosted an Olympic closing event. Organizers promise a "sartorial" production—tailored specifically to the Arena's ancient architecture while projecting a futuristic vision.

Antonio Abete, CEO of production company Filmmaster, described the show as a dialogue between tradition and innovation. The event will open with tributes to the Arena's operatic legacy and the legendary performers who have graced its stage over millennia, then transition through cutting-edge LED technology and contemporary visual solutions toward a forward-looking finale.

The program features a diverse roster designed to span generational appeal:

• Achille Lauro (contemporary Italian pop icon)

• Major Lazer (international electronic music collective)

• Benedetta Porcaroli (rising Roman actress)

• Gabry Ponte (veteran DJ and producer)

• Roberto Bolle (world-renowned ballet étoile)

Opera will anchor the production, with performances both inside the Arena and at the nearby Teatro Filarmonico, where choir and vocal segments will unfold simultaneously. Original scenography from the Arena's historical archive has been retrieved for the occasion, emphasizing themes of reuse and cultural memory. The visual centerpiece draws inspiration from a water droplet, symbolizing the connection between alpine peaks and Mediterranean shores.

Roughly 15,000 spectators will fill the Arena, with millions more watching via RAI and Eurosport broadcasts aimed particularly at Eastern European and Asian audiences, where Italian opera and cultural exports retain enormous appeal. The ceremony will include the traditional athlete parade, speeches from Olympic officials, the simultaneous extinguishing of Olympic flames in Milano and Cortina (a first for dual-host cities), and the handover to the French Alps, host of the 2030 Winter Games.

The nearly three-hour spectacle promises, in Abete's words, to be something "never seen before"—a fusion of Italy's millennial heritage with the dynamism of 21st-century performance art, broadcast from a monument that has witnessed gladiatorial contests, medieval fairs, Renaissance festivals, and now, the culmination of the world's premier winter sports competition.