The one-year countdown to the Milan Cortina Olympic Games is on. International Olympics Committee president Thomas Bach has proudly declared “Italy is ready.”

Italy began the one-year countdown to the Winter Olympics on Thursday with a series of events designed to fuel enthusiasm for the Games that will be co-hosted by Milan and the Alpine town of Cortina d'Ampezzo.

Italy is counting down to the 2026 Winter Olympics co-hosted by Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo, with significant investments to ensure readiness. Despite logistical challenges and climate concerns, organizers are confident in showcasing Italy's sportsmanship and sophistication on the global stage.

After all, Varnier, the CEO of the 2026 Winter Games in Milan-Cortina, Italy, spent a lot of time in Utah more than two decades ago as one of the directors of his country’s last Winter Games, in Torino in 2006.

Olympic curling champion Eve Muirhead believes Milan-Cortina 2026 will be a mix of the Winter Games’ past and future as it combines alpine resort settings with a wide geographic spread of existing venues to keep costs down.

Thomas Bach said Italy is ready to host next year's Winter Olympics as the one-year countdown to the sprawling Milan-Cortina Games began at an event in Italy's economic capital on Thursday. "Italy is ready to write the next chapter of its great Olympic history,

The president of the International Olympic Committee, Thomas Bach, said on Thursday that Italy is ready to write the next chapter of its Olympic history at an event organized at Milan's Piccolo Theatre one year before the 2026 Winter Olympics are scheduled to kick off.