The 25th Winter Olympics are upon us, and athletes around the globe are headed to Italy to compete for their home countries. The Olympic Games will take place in Milano Cortina, which is located in Northern Italy. Eight core sports, constituting sixteen disciplines, will be featured. A few of these include alpine skiing, bobsledding, figure skating and ice hockey.
The Olympic celebrations begin during the Olympic Torch Relay, a tradition at every Olympics. The flame begins its journey in Ancient Olympia, Greece, where it is lit, and ends in Milano, Italy, before the opening ceremony on February 6th. Notable names of the 2026 torchbearers have been Italian Formula One driver Andrea Kimi Antoelli, who carried the flame through Palmanova, Italy, Hong Kong actor and filmmaker, Jackie Chan, who carried the flame through historic ruins of Pompeii, Italy and American rapper, Snoop Dogg, who carried the flame through Milan, Italy.
Audrey Redmann, a freshman at NDB, partakes in competitive all mountain skiing at Kirkwood Resort in Kirkwood, California. She shared what the sport means to her, saying, “At first, I really just enjoyed being on the team, but then, when I started doing it competitively, it really became a sport that I started enjoying, even competing in.” With all mountain skiing being one of the many sports in the Winter Olympics, Redmann said, “I’m definitely going to watch the Winter Olympics. I’ll definitely try to watch mainly skiing, but if I can watch anything else, that’d be really good.” Alpine skiing came about in the late 1900s, but has been a part of the Olympics since 1936. It is now beloved by many and has bountiful fans who support the athletes during the Olympics. Alpine skiing competitions will consist of ten events during the Milano Cortina games, with 306 athletes competing.
Ice hockey player, Sarah Hung, is a sophomore at NDB and she will also be watching the Winter Olympics. Hung explained, “I think I’m going to watch both hockey and curling, because my parents are Canadian, and they’ve done curling before.” She shared that she’s been playing the sport for years and has made a lot of really good friends through it. Hung also said, “I’m really looking forward to playing hockey for the rest of high school, and I really like helping other people learn about hockey and just ice skating also. I’m a coach for younger kids, and I just really like seeing other people have fun”, which displays her true passion for the ice. Men’s ice hockey became an official Olympic sport in 1924, while women’s ice hockey joined in 1998. The sport is one of the most popular events to watch during the Winter Olympics, and brings large, spirited crowds.
Sports is a large part of NDB, so with the Winter Olympics approaching, countless NDB athletes expect to watch the games. Not only are the Olympics entertaining and exhilarating to watch, but also inspirational to young athletes globally.
