Megan Oldham celebrates her gold medal win for Canada alongside silver medalist Eileen Gu and bronze medalist Flora Tabanelli following the women's free ski big air final in Livigno on Monday.Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press
The Milan Cortina Winter Olympics are upon us and are poised to be historic in more ways than one, as Team Canada and the world’s best athletes compete in northern Italy. From hockey to figure skating and the upcoming debut of ski mountaineering, the Games continue to be nothing short of thrilling.
Here’s everything you need to know about as you cheer on Team Canada.
How many medals does Canada have?
Team Canada has taken home gold, silver and bronze medals in events including ice dance, snowboarding and skiing. View Canada’s up-to-date medal count below.
When do the Olympics end and how many events are left?
The Winter Games will officially conclude on Sunday, Feb. 22. You can view the full official Olympics schedule here.
Plus, follow The Globe and Mail’s live coverage of all the latest news and analysis of the Games on our website or mobile app.
When are the key events to watch?
The Canadian women’s hockey team celebrates their win against Switzerland on Monday in Milan.Leah Hennel/The Canadian Press
Canada’s women’s hockey team will aim to defend their Olympic title against the United States in the gold-medal match on Feb 19. at 1:10 p.m. ET.
And with NHLers back in the Olympics, Canada’s men’s hockey team will look to get their first gold since their last appearance in Sochi 2014. After winning their Feb. 18 match against Czechia in overtime, they’ll play in the gold-medal game on Feb. 22 at 8:10 a.m. ET.
Canada’s women’s curling team is aiming to end their 12-year gold medal drought at the Games as well. View Team Canada’s complete schedule here.
Team Canada sizes up the Winter Olympics
When is the Olympics closing ceremony?
The Closing Ceremony will take place on Sunday, February 22 at 2:30 p.m. ET in Verona at the Verona Olympic Arena, a UNESCO World Heritage site. The two Olympic cauldrons in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo will be extinguished, signifying the end of a thrilling 2026 Winter Games. Canada’s flagbearers for the ceremony have yet to be confirmed, but, in true Olympic fashion, the event will celebrate “culture, music, sport and humanity,” according to the official Milan Cortina Winter Games website. Italians Roberto Bolle, a ballet dancer, musician Achille Lauro and DJ Gabry Ponte are slated to perform. The Roman actress Benedette Porcaroli is also expected to appear in the festivities.
How to watch and stream the Olympics in Canada
CBC is Canada’s official Olympic broadcaster. The 2026 Winter Games are available to watch on CBC through your TV provider, or to stream for free on the CBC Gem app or at CBCGem.ca.
What is the mascot of the 2026 Winter Olympics?
A medallist holds plush toy versions of Olympic mascots Tina and Flo.KIRILL KUDRYAVTSEV/AFP/Getty Images
The official mascots of the Milan Cortina Winter Games are a pair of stoats (of the weasel family) named Tina and Milo. Tina, the lighter-coloured stoat is the Olympic mascot, while her brother, Milo, has darker “fur” and represents the Paralympic Games. Not on the official roster but part of the Games as well is Flo — a small, flower-like figure with cartoonish facial features and dressed in a green outfit.
How many sports are in the Winter Olympics?
There are a total of eight official sports on display at the 2026 edition of the Games, with 15 distinct disciplines. The sports include: biathlon, bobsleigh, curling, ice hockey, luge, skating, ski mountaineering and skiing. In terms of disciplines, these range from different branches of skiing (alpine, cross country, freestyle) to variations of skating (figure skating, speed skating, short track). View the full list of disciplines here.
Which new sports were added?
Milan Cortina is debuting one entirely new sport: ski mountaineering. Also known as “skimo,” it involves athletes ascending with skis on their backs, climbing with skis on skins, and then descending the mountain. Medals will be awarded in the women’s sprint, men’s sprint and mixed relay events.
How many athletes are representing Canada?
Team Canada is filled with household names and rising stars in winter sports.Illustration by Matthew Billington; Source Images: Dandjinou: Graham Hughes/CP; Howden: Jeff McIntosh/CP; Homan: Darren Calabrese/CP; Kingsbury: Robert F. Bukaty/AP Photo; McMorris: Michael Reaves/Getty Images; Poulin: Elsa/Getty Images; Crawford: Gabriele Facciotti/AP Photo; Blondin: Sue Ogrocki /AP Photo; Dudek: Issei Kato/REUTERS; McDavid: Minas Panagiotakis/Getty Images; Mountain: Maja Hitij/Getty Images
There are 206 Canadian athletes chasing their Olympic dreams at Milan Cortina, looking to surpass this country’s four-gold, 26-medal performance at the 2022 Beijing Winter Games.
In total, approximately 2,900 Olympians from around the world will compete in Italy.
What is AIN, and are Russia and Belarus banned from the Olympics?
Russian and Belarusian athletes remain barred from competing under their country’s flags because of the war in Ukraine, and are only permitted to participate as vetted Individual Neutral Athletes in some sports federations. These athletes will be referred to as “AIN,” the French designation introduced to describe them during the Paris 2024 Summer Games.
Neutral status can be approved by the International Olympic Committee for athletes in individual sports who were deemed to have not actively supported the war, and who are not affiliated with Russia’s military or state security agencies.
Russia and Belarus are also prohibited from competing in team sports, including hockey. A total of 13 Russian athletes and seven Belarusian athletes are competing as individual neutrals, according to the IOC.
Where are Olympic events being held?
Most of the 116 medal events are taking place in six cities across northern Italy, spanning approximately 22,000 square kilometres: Milan, Cortina, Livigno, Anterselva, Predazzo and Bormio.
There are also six separate athlete villages, making Milan Cortina the first edition of the Winter Games with a multicentered model.
Canadian Olympic Committee works to navigate a very spread out Winter Games
Milan is hosting most of the ice sports, including speed skating, figure skating and hockey. Cortina is hosting events such as curling, bobsled and luge. The four other hubs – which are smaller mountain clusters – are staging the majority of the ski and snowboarding events.
The closing ceremonies will be held in Verona, the setting for Romeo and Juliet.
What’s the time difference to Milan?
Italy is six hours ahead of Toronto (ET) and nine hours ahead of Vancouver (PT).
Many major medal events – including the men’s and women’s gold medal hockey games – will take place in the afternoon or evening in Italy, allowing for morning or early-afternoon viewing in North America.
With reports from Rachel Brady, Eric Reguly, Chris O’Leary, The Canadian Press and The Associated Press
Ask us your Olympics questions
What do you want to know about the 2026 Winter Games and Team Canada so far? Send us your questions, and The Globe's journalists on the ground in Italy will try to answer them.