Summary: One week into the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics (6–22 February), the Games have already delivered tight medal races, breakout champions, and a distinctive “spread-out” Italian geography—moving the spotlight between Milan’s arenas and the alpine venues of the Dolomites and beyond. Norway has set an early pace on golds, Switzerland has surged through alpine events, and host nation Italy has stayed firmly in the mix—while several headline moments, from record-setting speed skating to decisive biathlon shooting, have framed the first phase of competition.
A Games stretched across Italy—and built around movement
Milano Cortina 2026 is not a single-city Olympics in the classic sense. Competition is distributed across clusters in northern Italy, linking urban arenas with high-mountain courses and long-established winter-sport venues. That design has been both the event’s signature and its daily operational test: athletes and teams have navigated travel routines that feel closer to a championship tour than a compact Olympic village rhythm.
For a snapshot of the atmosphere at the start of the Games, The European Times’ early take on the opening days captured the contrast between Milan’s metropolitan stage and the mountain backdrop that defines much of the sporting programme.
Medal picture: early leaders and a crowded chase
As of 12 February, the medal table remains fluid, but the early contours are clear. Norway has led on gold medals so far, while Switzerland and the United States have been close enough to keep the overall rankings competitive. Italy, as host, has stayed within striking distance—helped by strong early results across multiple disciplines.
- Norway: 7 gold, 2 silver, 4 bronze (13 total)
- Switzerland: 4 gold, 1 silver, 2 bronze (7 total)
- United States: 3 gold, 5 silver, 2 bronze (10 total)
- Italy: 2 gold, 2 silver, 7 bronze (11 total)
Note: Medal counts can change quickly as events conclude each day. For the official daily schedule and results hub, see Milano Cortina 2026 Schedule & Results.
Early defining moments: precision, speed, and alpine margins
Several performances have come to symbolise the “so far” of these Games—where medals have often turned on one clean shooting series, one late surge, or one fast line through a technical section of course.
- Biathlon’s fine margins: France’s Julia Simon underlined how biathlon can reward composure as much as pace, delivering a gold built on near-perfect shooting in the women’s 15km individual.
- A record statement on ice: American speed skater Jordan Stolz converted pre-Games expectation into an Olympic title in the men’s 1,000m, setting an Olympic record in the process.
- Swiss surge in Alpine skiing: Switzerland’s Franjo von Allmen has been one of the early faces of the Games, adding a super-G title to a growing medal haul and reinforcing Switzerland’s broader strength in speed events.
Those results—across very different sports—share a theme: the first week has rewarded athletes able to manage pressure late in runs, late in laps, or late in shooting sequences, where mistakes are punished immediately.
Italy’s host-nation storyline: present and competitive
Host nations often carry a double burden: expectation and attention. Italy’s early return has been less about a single dominant sport and more about breadth—staying visible across disciplines and keeping local crowds engaged across multiple venues. With so much of the schedule still to come, the host storyline remains open: whether Italy can convert depth into golds, or whether the Games will settle into the familiar pattern of Norway’s endurance power and Switzerland’s alpine efficiency.
What to watch next
The next phase of Milano Cortina 2026 will likely sharpen three questions:
- Can Norway maintain its gold pace as the schedule shifts and pressure accumulates?
- Will Switzerland keep converting alpine strength into a sustained medal climb?
- Can Italy turn consistent podium appearances into a late surge of top-step finishes as the home stretch approaches?
With the Games running through 22 February, the story is still being written—by athletes chasing fractions of a second, by teams calibrating travel and recovery across a wide geography, and by the daily unpredictability that remains the Winter Olympics’ most reliable feature.
