The unusual has become the norm in the Olympic movement. A few hours before celebrating the symbolic date of D – 1.000 days before the opening of the Milan-Cortina 2026 Winter Games, the IOC and the Italian organizers concluded a new meeting of the coordination commission this week. Online, remotely. With speakers all over the world.
Giovanni Malago, the president of the organizing committee, was in Milan, surrounded by his close guard, including the new general director, Andrea Varnier. Christophe Dubi, the executive director of the Olympic Games at the IOC, was in Lausanne. As for Sari Essayah, the president of the coordination commission, she participated in the exercise from her country, Finland.
Without the slightest surprise, the two camps displayed to the media, when taking stock of the meeting, satisfied faces and shared confidence. The official speech turned out to be the same.
« We are entering an exciting and crucial phase, assured Sari Essayah. We are confident because the organizing committee now has a strong team, new commercial partnerships have been announced and important decisions have been made regarding venues. The foundations have been successfully laid, which will provide further impetus to preparations in the coming months"
The words are carefully chosen. They do not hide the sluggish departure of the Italian train, to say the least, but ensure that the pace is now more reassuring. They suggest that the hardest part is over, notably these long months of waiting for the arrival of a general director, that the delay can be filled and that the pieces of the puzzle are now complete.
The words of Giovanni Malago drive the point home. “ We are extremely grateful for the atmosphere of patience and effective cooperation that characterizes our relations, not only with this Commission but also with the IOC, the IPC and the international federations., explained the Italian. We are fully aware of the challenges ahead, but I must say that the closing report gives me some comfort. »
Everything is working, then? Yes and no. A thousand days before the opening ceremony, Milan-Cortina 2026 no longer has the right to make mistakes. THE " challenges » mentioned by Giovanni Malago remain immense. Sari Essayah herself admitted this to the media on Thursday, May 11, barely hiding a tone of rare firmness behind her smiles: “ At this point, there is no longer any time to lose. Andrea Varnier's team needs more experts and employees. The plan is good, but they will have to recruit in 2023. The effects of the war in Ukraine are being felt on costs, they will also have to find more sponsors to support the additional costs linked to inflation"
In recent months, the Milan-Cortina 2026 team has recorded two arrivals presented as decisive: Andrea Francisi as director of operations, and former fencer Diana Bianchedi as head of strategy. The IOC and Sari Essayah appreciated it. But the Finn is not giving up: there are still heads, and even more arms, missing to stay on track.
The partnership ? Making progress, too. Andrea Varnier recalled that the organizing committee had recorded the arrival of five national partners since the start of the year. Not bad. But they are also the top five. 1.000 days before the event, the copy remains very insufficient.
« We are currently engaged in a number of negotiationshe said. By the end of 2023, we hope to have twelve partners"
The Italian clan assured the media on Thursday May 11: the budget for the next Winter Games has not changed since the attribution, in 2019, of the Olympic and Paralympic event to Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo. At the last count, it is still set at 1,5 billion euros, the figure announced during the application phase. “ We try to keep it at this level“, explained Andrea Varnier. Succeeding in such a bet would be a feat.
