Will the city of Turin be included in the map of sites for the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Games? Less than three years before the event, everything is still possible. The mayor of Turin, Stefano Lo Russo, wants it and does not hide it. The president of the Piedmont region, Alberto Ciero, seems to agree. And a strong supporter has just joined the Turin camp. Matteo Salvini, the vice-president of the Italian Council, who is also minister of transport and infrastructure, publicly took a position on Monday 20 March in favor of adding Piedmont to the Olympic system. “Let’s see if we can include a piece of Piedmont, he said in a speech at the opening of a conference. Piedmont wanted to stay away because of some geniuses of the ‘No’, so it risks being excluded from an Olympiad that will make Italy known to the whole world and guarantee induced revenues of at least 5 billion euros.” At this stage of preparation, the only prospect of the city of Turin to be part of the adventure remains the speed skating track. It was originally planned in Baselga di Pinè, but this option was abandoned because of the too high costs of renovating the structure. In Turin, the project consists of putting back into service, and to Olympic standards, the track of the Winter Games in 2026, the Lingotto ring. But the cost of the operation is also very high. The question will be discussed this Tuesday, March 21, at a new meeting of the steering committee of the 2026 Winter Games. It could be definitively decided. Despite the late support of Matteo Salvini in favor of Turin and Piedmont, the choice should logically fall on Milan, where a speed ring would be installed at the Rho Exhibition Centre. It would be close to the athletes’ village and the medals square, and much less expensive in terms of transportation and security.
