2026 Winter Olympics torch relay explained

Host City:Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy
Countries Visited:Greece and Italy
Distance:12000km (7,000miles)
Torch Bearers:10,001
Theme:The Greatest Journey

The torch relay (it|Il Viaggio della Fiamma Olimpica) for the 2026 Winter Olympics is planned to commence on 26 November 2025 in Olympia, Greece, and conclude on 6 February 2026 in Milan, Italy, coinciding with the opening ceremony at San Siro.[1] The routes for both the Olympic and Paralympic torch relays were unveiled by the Fondazione Milano Cortina 2026 on 26 November 2024, one year before the start of the former.

Following the lighting of the Olympic flame in Olympia, a handover ceremony will happen in Athens on 4 December 2025, where the flame will then arrive in Rome and visit all 110 provinces of Italy, making 60 stops over 63 days across 12000km (7,000miles).[2] The torch will be in Naples for Christmas, in Bari for New Year's Eve, and in Cortina d'Ampezzo on 26 January to commemorate 70 years since it hosted the 1956 Winter Olympics. While the torch is in Piedmont, a tribute is planned for skier Matilde Lorenzi, who died while training in October 2024.[3] The torch relay plans to showcase many of the World Heritage Sites in the country and will involve 10,001 torchbearers. Applications for torchbearers are scheduled to open in February 2025.

On 29 November 2024, Italian comedy trio were announced as official narrators for the torch relay.[4] The design of the torch is scheduled to be unveiled on 14 April at Expo 2025 in Osaka, Japan, as well as simultaneously in Milan; Osaka and Milan are twin cities.[5] [6]

Stops in Greece

As per tradition, the lighting ceremony will take place at the Temple of Hera in Olympia using a parabolic mirror to concentrate the rays of the sun; the flame will then travel to Athens for the handover ceremony.[7]

Stops in Italy

After the flame's arrival in Rome on 4 December 2025, the relay through the country will start two days later and travel through Tuscany before visiting the islands of Sardinia and Sicily and then returning to the mainland. The route plans to visit all 20 regions of Italy and 110 provinces.

Stops on the 2026 Winter Olympics torch relay
StopDateRegion
Rome1 Lazio
Viterbo2
Terni3 Umbria
Perugia4
Siena5 Tuscany
Florence6
Livorno7
Nuoro8 Sardinia
Cagliari9
Palermo10 Sicily
Agrigento11
Syracuse12
Catania13
Reggio Calabria14 Calabria
Catanzaro15
Salerno16 Campania
Pompei17
Naples18
Latina19 Lazio
Benevento20 Campania
Potenza21 Basilicata
Taranto22 Apulia
Lecce23
Bari24
Campobasso25 Molise
Pescara26 Abruzzo
L'Aquila27
Ancona28 Marche
Rimini29 Emilia-Romagna
Bologna30
Ferrara31
Parma32
Genoa33 Liguria
Cuneo34 Piedmont
Turin35
Aosta36 Aosta Valley
Novara37 Piedmont
Varese38 Lombardy
Pavia39
Piacenza40 Emilia-Romagna
Brescia41 Lombardy
Verona42 Veneto
Mantua43 Lombardy
Vicenza44 Veneto
Padua45
Venice46
Trieste47 Friuli-Venezia Giulia
Udine48
Belluno49 Veneto
Cortina d'Ampezzo50
Bolzano51 Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol
Cavalese52
Trento53
Livigno54 Lombardy
Sondrio55
Lecco56
Bergamo57
Como58
Monza59
Milan60

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Milano Cortina 2026 unveils “Greatest Journey” as Olympic Torch Relay route announced. 26 November 2024. International Olympic Committee. 28 November 2024.
  2. Web site: The Greatest Journey. International Olympic Committee. 28 November 2024.
  3. Web site: Olympic flame for 2026 Milan-Cortina Games will go on 63-day journey across Italy. 26 November 2024. Daniella. Matar. AP News. 28 November 2024.
  4. Web site: Gli Autogol racconteranno il Viaggio della Fiamma. 29 November 2024. it. International Olympic Committee. 29 November 2024.
  5. Web site: Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Torch at Expo 2025 Osaka. 12 July 2024. International Olympic Committee. 28 November 2024.
  6. Web site: Al via il viaggio della fiamma olimpica di Milano Cortina. 26 November 2024. it. Agenzia Nazionale Stampa Associata. 28 November 2024.
  7. Web site: Plans revealed for Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic torch relay. 26 November 2024. Caela. Fenton. Canadian Olympic Committee. 29 November 2024.