Nearly one week before the start of the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, the organizing committee has released official information on the event's Cultural Olympiad: an arts and culture programme accompanying the Olympic and Paralympic Games. The programme is recognized by the IOC as one of the three pillars of the Olympic Movement, alongside sport and education. Conceived as a widespread platform involving territories, institutions, and communities across Italy, the Cultural Olympiad aims to highlight the Italian Alps and Milan's cultural heritage while promoting Olympic values through art, history, and participation beyond the official sports venues.
David Chipperfield Architects has released new images of the Ice Hockey Arena in Milan, one of the host sports venues for the 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics. The project, currently in its testing phase, was commissioned to Arup and David Chipperfield Architects in 2021. The first images of the elliptical amphitheatre arena were released in 2022, ahead of the start of construction in 2023, which was scheduled for completion in 2025. The new sports and cultural events venue has a capacity of 16,000 spectators, 12,000 seated and 4,000 standing, and is a centrepiece of a broader urban redevelopment project originally designed by Foster + Partners for Milano Santa Giulia, a district in the south-east of Milan, just a few kilometres from the city centre and connected to the high-speed rail network and motorway.
One month remains until the Opening Ceremony of the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026, with competitions set to run from February 4 to 22, 2026. The Opening Ceremony will take place on February 6 at the Milano San Siro Olympic Stadium and will bring together approximately 2,900 athletes from around the world competing across 16 sports, with 116 gold medals to be awarded. The Olympic Winter Games return to Italy twenty years after Torino 2006 and seventy years after Cortina 1956. This edition, however, adopts a markedly different approach, proposing a shift away from the traditional high-cost, high-waste model toward adaptive reuse, renewable energy, and long-term regional development. The most geographically dispersed Winter Games in history plan to rely on 92% existing or temporary venues, build on regions with established tourism industries, avoid major environmental disruption, and implement circular design and recycling strategies, the results of which will become evident in the coming months. The Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Paralympics will follow, taking place from March 6 to 15, 2026.
As preparations advance for the Milano Cortina 2026Olympic Winter Games, set to take place from February 6 to 22, 2026, this edition introduces one of the most geographically wide-ranging configurations ever implemented for the Winter Olympics. Extending across two cities, two regions, and two autonomous provinces, the competitions will be staged over more than 22,000 square kilometres of Northern Italy. Metropolitan venues in Milan are paired with longstanding Alpine centres in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Livigno, Bormio, Anterselva, and Val di Fiemme, creating a framework that bridges urban and mountain contexts. More than 90 per cent of the venues are existing or temporary facilities, reflecting a strategy centred on adaptive reuse, selective upgrades, and long-term integration into regional sport and cultural infrastructures. Nearly 2,900 athletes will compete in 116 events, including the debut of ski mountaineering and several new mixed-gender formats that signal evolving approaches to winter sports programming.
The history of the Olympic Games, while marked by athletic achievement, is consistently contrasted by infrastructure challenges. Across host cities, from Athens to Rio and Beijing, similar issues arise: significant cost overruns and the complex issue of legacy. The big question is: What is the best viable long-term use for purpose-built sport venues? Montreal's 1976 Games shared this fate after building an Olympic Park that faced heavy criticism for cost overruns and debt from specialized construction. Post-Games, venues like the Montreal Velodrome risked becoming a financial burden. However, the city demonstrated a proactive response by proposing the transformation of the building into a thriving civic asset that now stands as an internationally recognized example of successful Olympic venue repurposing.
Cultural diplomacy refers to the use of cultural expression and creative exchange to foster understanding and build relationships between nations. In this context, architecture has long played a distinctive role. Beyond its functional and aesthetic dimensions, it serves as a medium of communication, a language through which countries express identity, values, and ambition on the global stage.
Architecture operates as a form of soft power — persuasive rather than coercive — enabling nations to project influence through material presence. From modernist embassies in the post-war era to monumental pavilions at world expositions, governments and institutions have recognized the built environment's potential to shape perception. By commissioning prominent architects and adopting specific design languages, countries have used architecture to signal modernity, tradition, innovation, or stability.
On June 24, 2019, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced that Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo would host the 2026 Winter Olympic Games. The last Winter Games to take place in Italy were held in Turin in 2006, and since then, climate change in the European continent has impacted traditional skiing venues. In this context, Italy has the advantage of a portion of the Alps, a strip of about 1,200 km along the borders with France, Switzerland, Austria, and Slovenia. The Italian Alpine region hosts most of the facilities that have been prepared over the past five years for the Winter Olympics, which will take place from February 6 to 22, 2026, followed by the Paralympic Games from March 6 to 15. Set to be the most geographically widespread Olympic Winter Games in history, this edition continues the sustainable model established by the Paris 2024 Olympic Games by relying almost entirely on existing and reconditioned sports infrastructure.
Italy is preparing to host its third Olympic Winter Games as Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo welcome Milano Cortina 2026, seventy years after Cortina staged the 1956 edition and two decades after Torino 2006. The Games will take place from February 6 to 22, 2026, marking the first time the Winter Olympics are organized across two cities, two regions, Lombardy and Veneto, and two autonomous provinces, Trento and Bolzano. Covering a territory of 22,000 square kilometers, Milano Cortina 2026 will become the most geographically extensive Winter Games to date, with over 90% of venues already existing or designed as temporary facilities.
As the Paris 2024 Olympics draw to a close, the city has showcased a new model for hosting the iconic Games by integrating its landmarks and urban spaces into the event. As the spotlight now shifts to Los Angeles, the 2028 Summer Olympics present a different approach from a built environment and urban planning perspective. During the 2024 Olympics, Paris used its rich cultural heritage as a backdrop for competition, reimagining sports within the city's built environment. This approach not only highlighted the city's history and architecture but also minimized the need for new construction, focusing instead on temporary and innovative uses of existing spaces.
Officially the Games of the XXXIV Olympiad, LA28 is scheduled to take place from July 14–30, 2028. Los Angeles, a city with a deep Olympic history, will host the Games for the third time, following its previous times in 1932 and 1984. In contrast to the typical Olympic model, which often involves extensive new construction, Los Angeles is planning to leverage its existing infrastructure and venues spread across Greater Los Angeles, with most venues grouped in sports parks across Downtown Los Angeles, San Francisco Valley, Carson, Long Beach, and Oklahoma. No new permanent venue shave been announced to be built specifically for the Games. This strategy is designed to minimize environmental impact and financial costs, aligning with broader goals of sustainability and responsible urban development.
Guillaume Bontemps/Ville de Paris. Image Courtesy of Paris 2024 Olympic Games
The recent history of the city of Paris is entangled with that of the Olympic Games. In 1900, Paris hosted the second edition of the Games, starting a journey of urban adaptations and architectural developments that prepared the city for the event. Among the most important changes was the introduction of Line 1 of the metro, inaugurated in 1900 to link the locations of the Universal Exhibition with those of the Olympic Games in Vincennes. Just 24 years later, the city hosted one of the most influential editions of the Olympic Games. The event, the first to be broadcasted on the airwaves, contributed to a substantial rise in the popularity of the Games. It was also during this edition that the concept of the Olympic Village was born. Several of the infrastructures and venues built over a century ago are still in use in Paris, with some of them returning now as hosts of Olympic events.
The first Olympic village was built for the 1924 Summer Games in Paris. Before this, athletes stayed in hotels, hostels, schools, headquarters, and even on the ships that brought them to the host cities. Pierre de Coubertin, co-founder of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), proposed the idea of an Olympic village. He realized it would be more cost-effective to house athletes in temporary structures rather than hotels. He believed the village would also create a sense of community among the international competitors.
To take advantage of the historic heritage of the city of Paris while also minimizing the impact of the Olympics, the Paris 2024 Games are organizing a set of temporary arenas and installations to host several key competitions, only to be disassembled after the games' closing. Only one sports venue has been built specifically for the 2024 Olympic Games, the Aquatics Centre Paris, as the city aims to use its existing sporting infrastructure to the maximum, ensuring a smaller footprint compared to previous editions. In addition to the established venues, key temporary sites include the Trocadéro, Eiffel Tower, Champ-de-Mars, Esplanade des Invalides, Pont Alexandre III, Place de la Concorde, and Place de l’Hôtel de Ville, with additional stands along the Seine for the Opening Ceremony.
The assembly and disassembly of these temporary sites will follow a step-by-step approach to minimize disruption. Geographical phasing will preserve traffic lanes and access to public spaces, while time phasing will gradually activate and deactivate competition perimeters to limit construction impact and quickly restore spaces post-Games. These measures align with Paris 2024's commitment to organizing responsible and respectful Games and preserving the city's urban and natural heritage.
At the beginning of the 20th century, the Olympic games included some unusual medal competitions, including architectural design and town planning. While these are no longer awarded Olympic events, architecture and urban planning continues to continue to have a crucial effect on the development of the global sporting event. Cities that bid to host face an important challenge in adapting their infrastructure to accommodate not only the venues and facilities, but all the support structures needed for a safe and enjoyable edition. Paris is no different. While the city hosted 2 previous editions of the games over a century ago, the challenges of the modern-day Games have proven significant. However, the city’s expansive infrastructures have enabled officials to adjust the measures in an effort to have sustainable development for and after the Games. With less than a month to go until the opening ceremony, explore the measures taken by city officials and the long-lasting effects of hosting an Olympic event.
For cities, hosting an Olympic event represents both an honor, an important opportunity for growth, and a significant challenge. With over 200 nations taking part in the Games, the Olympics are the largest sporting competition in the world. Adapting the public and sporting infrastructure to accommodate this sudden influx of people and the scale of these events runs the risk of misunderstanding the cities’ needs after the closing ceremony, often producing “white elephants” that struggle to adapt to the rhythm and necessities of everyday urban life. Urban transformations are often cited as an advantage of hosting the Olympic Games, as cities are incentivized to invest in their traffic infrastructure, housing, and public spaces. One such example is the city of Paris, which introduced its first metro line on the occasion of hosting the second edition of the Olympic Games in 1900.
When it comes to the venues, however, the issue of adaptive reuse becomes a pressing one, as the architecture is challenged to find solutions to transform, accommodating thousands of people during the Olympics, then scaling down to become a financially sustainable part of a city’s sporting offering. Across the world, several Olympic venues have managed to extend their usability after the closing of the games, opening themselves to the local communities and welcoming a more diverse programming of sports and leisure events. While the high construction costs are often difficult to justify, these venues have become markers of local identity and attractive tourist attractions, extending their use decades after welcoming the Olympic crowds.
Renowned French architect Jean Nouvel has unveiled his design for Samsung’s pop-up store on the iconic Avenue des Champs-Élysées in Paris, France. The store aims to represent the company’s role as a Worldwide Olympic Partner, offering visitors a space where they can engage with the newest mobile technologies and Olympic-related activities. The first images by architectural photographer Jad Sylla highlight Jean Nouvel’s design of the immersive retail space.
Few cultural events bring the world together like the Olympics. Today, athletes from around the world continue to participate in a variety of competitions after the covid-19 pandemic. The Olympic Games are considered the world's foremost sports competition with more than 200 nations participating. In turn, they bring to question the role of architecture and design in each host city's urban evolution.
Beijing 2022 Winter Olympic Games and Paralympic Games have officially opened on February 4, 2022. The Winter Olympics made a brave move by adding two snow zones in Zhangjiakou and Yanqing to the ice zone in Beijing, creating an unprecedented three-zone system for the Winter Olympics.
Architectural Design & Research Institute of Tsinghua University (THAD), has led the planning and architectural design of the whole and all venues in Zhangjiakou Zone and Shougang Venue in Beijing Zone. Planning and Venue design for Yanqing Zone was elaborated by the China Architectural Design & Research Group. Chinese architects took the initiative to create while serving the principle of sustainable development and closely integrating architectural planning methodologies and architectural design during the approximately six-year construction cycle. They proposed the design framework of "full-scale spatial intervention" based on the "General Plan, Regulatory Plan, Urban Design, Architecture Design and Equipment System Design," completing the Chinese practice of sustainable Winter Olympics.
