Milano Cortina faces mounting challenges

Italian authorities are under increasing pressure to speed up preparations for the 2026 Winter Olympics, as funding delays and unseasonably warm weather have raised concerns that extend beyond the hosts to the wider structural challenges facing winter sports. Johan Eliasch, president of the International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS), warned that the challenges facing the hosts reflect deeper structural pressures on winter sports. With the Games due to open on 6 February, Eliasch said that the technical difficulties affecting several venues were not the result of shortcomings by the local organising committees, but rather were linked to delays in the release of government funding. "We...