Olympics opening ceremony live updates: Mariah Carey opens Games in Italy
- GAB NEWS
- 7 hours ago
- 7 min read
MILAN — The opening ceremony for the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milano Cortina is happening right now, marking the official start of these Games.
This year's main ceremony is at San Siro Stadium in Milan, a 100-year-old venue and the oldest in Italy. Officials previously announced an inclusive theme featuring a show inside the stadium, but the festivities stretch across the clusters of the Milano Cortina Games, including satellite ceremonies in Livigno and Predazzo. The parade of nations features athletes from more than 90 countries around the world.
Team USA is third to last in the parade of nations because the U.S. hosts the 2034 Winter Olympics. Italy is last because it's playing host now; France is second to last because it hosts the 2030 Games.
USA TODAY Sports is on the ground across Northern Italy to bring you live updates from the night. Follow along.
Mariah Carey at Olympics opening ceremony
Mariah Carey is singing two songs during the opening ceremony. One, Nothing is Impossible, is one of Carey’s own. It’s from her “Here for It All” album, released last September.
The second, Nel blu dipinto di blu, is better known as Volare. C’mon! Sing it with me! “Volare, oh, oh. Contare, oh, oh, oh, oh.” The song, inspired by paintings by Marc Chagall, first came to fame as Italy’s entrant at the 1958 Eurovision contest. While it didn’t win, it was named Billboard’s Song of the Year and won song of the year and record of the year honors at the first-ever Grammys.
Prior to Carey, the song has been covered by Dean Martin, David Bowie, Frank Sinatra, Barry White and the Gipsy Kings. — Nancy Armour
Is Mariah Carey Italian?
Carey's mother, an opera singer, is of Irish descent and her father African-American and Afro-Venezuelan.
Laura Pausini at opening ceremony
Grammy winner Laura Pausini sung the Italian national anthem at the opening ceremony. Italy’s national anthem is “Il Canto degli Italiani,” which translates to “The Chant of the Italians.” Though Italians often refer to it as “Inno di Memeli,” after the author of its lyrics, or “Fratelli d’Italia,” which is how the anthem beings.
The anthem was written in 1847 and became popular during Italy’s fight for independence. It was adopted as Italy’s national anthem after World War II. — Nancy Armour
San Siro Stadium
San Siro Stadium in Milano is the largest stadium in Italy, with a capacity of 75,817. It is best known as the home of both AC Milan and Inter Milan, two of Italy’s most famous soccer teams.
This is the second time San Siro has hosted an opening ceremony for a global sporting event, also doing so during the men’s World Cup in 1990. Six games were played at San Siro during that tournament.
San Siro has also hosted the final of the Champions League, a season-long tournament of Europe’s top soccer clubs, four times, most recently in 2016.
How many US athletes at Winter Olympics?
The U.S. team for the Milano Cortina Olympics has 232 athletes, its largest-ever for a Winter Olympics.
Shaun White at Olympics opening ceremony
The three-time Olympic gold medalist is a part of NBC's broadcast team for the opening ceremony, particularly the parade of nations portion. He went to five Winter Games — 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018, 2022 — and won gold in snowboard halfpipe in 2006, 2010 and 2018.
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How long is Olympics opening ceremony?
The opening ceremony is expected to last about 2 hours and 45 minutes. The longest part is the parade of athletes, which is scheduled to take just over an hour and 3 minutes. There is also a 30-minute pre-show.
Who is performing at Olympics opening ceremony?
Mariah Carey and Andrea Bocelli are among the performers.
Why does Greece go first in opening ceremony parade of nations?
Greece goes first in the Parade of Nations because it’s the birthplace of the Olympics, ancient and modern.
The Olympics were a regular occurrence for almost 12 centuries in ancient Greece. When Pierre de Coubertin decided to bring them back, he chose Athens as the first site of the modern Olympic Games, in 1896. — Nancy Armour
When does US go in opening ceremony parade of nations?
You’re going to have to wait to see Team USA in the Parade of Nations. The United States is the third-last of the 92 delegations, just ahead of France, host of the next Winter Games, and Italy.
Olympic flames
Two Olympic cauldrons will be lit for the first time in Olympic history, one in Milan and one in mountain town Cortina d'Ampezzo, where alpine skiing and other snow events are being held. The cauldrons will be lit at the same time and were designed to emulate Leonardo da Vinci's knot engravings, according to Olympic officials. da Vinci lived in Milan for 17 years of his renowned life.
Where to watch Olympic opening ceremony
NBC is broadcasting it, and Peacock is streaming it.
Lindsey Vonn fans in Cortina as opening ceremony festivities pick up
CORTINA D’AMPEZZO, Italy — Eager spectators walk past window shops of internationally renowned fashion houses such as Valentino, Dior and Fendi along Corso Italia in Cortina. Base shakes bars and restaurants teeming with locals and those in town from all over the world for the 2026 Winter Olympic Games. They’re passing time with an assortment of wines and beers, reflecting on the day with about half an hour until the opens ceremony begins. Overheard from an American fan with two miniature flags sticking out of her collar musing over Lindsey Vonn’s miraculous downhill training run this afternoon post ACL rupture: “She was a superstar!” And to her naysayers?: “Everyone shut up.”
Just outside the Olympic fan village, young children plant the Italian flag into a mount of hard, muddy snow that’s been cleared from the brick walkway for foot traffic.
Inflatables of Milo and Tina — the dual mascots of these Games representing Milano and Cortina — are set up and a popular photo pop spot for fans. Milo and Tina are brown and white stoats, also known as ermines, which belong to the weasel family.
White neon light doodles of winter sports logos based in the Dolomites line Corso Italia along with flags representing the nations competing at these Games. — Payton Titus
Where are Winter Olympics 2026?
The Winter Olympics always sprawl, because of the need for mountains. But the Milano Cortina Games are the most geographically spread out in Olympic and Paralympic history, with a footprint just slightly smaller than the entire state of New Jersey.
Most of the indoor events – hockey, speed skating, short-track speedskating and figure skating — are going to be in Milano. For the mountain events, however, organizers are making use of venues already used for World Cups and world championships in Cortina, Livigno and Bormio. — Nancy Armour
How Livigno opening ceremony is shaping up
LIVIGNO, Italy — There’s a host, a DJ playing “Forever Young,” Olympic mascots and a sizable crowd already filing into Livigno Snow Park for this town’s own little satellite opening ceremony, which is set to include skiers and snowboarders from the mountain clusters Livigno and Bormio sites.The ceremony will take place in the infield of the venue, which is at the base of the hills for the halfpipe and big air snowboarding and freestyle skiing competitions. — Gentry Estes
How Milan opening ceremony is shaping up
MILAN — The crowd at Milano San Siro Stadium enjoyed a DJ set before the opening ceremony officially kicked off. The jam session included a step-by-step dance tutorial that featured arm motions reminiscent of the YMCA. The set lasted about 30 minutes before the igloo-inspired DJ booth was carried off the stage ahead of the opening ceremony getting under way. — Cydney Henderson
What time is it in Milano Cortina?
Milano Cortina is in Central European Time and is six hours ahead of Eastern Time.
What sports are in the Winter Olympics?
The 2026 Milano Cortina Games feature 16 sports.
Alpine skiing: 10 medal events
Biathlon: 11 medal events
Bobsled: four medal events
Cross-country skiing: 12 medal events
Curling: three medal events
Figure skating: five medal events
Freestyle skiing: 15 medal events
Ice hockey: two medal events
Luge: five medal events
Nordic combined: three medal events
Short track speed skating: nine medal events
Skeleton: three medal events
Ski jumping: six medal events
Ski mountaineering: three medal events
Snowboard: 11 medal events
Speed skating: 14 medal events
US flag bearers for opening ceremony
Olympic speedskating champion Erin Jackson and bobsledder Frank Del Duca have been selected as the flag bearers for Team USA's delegation at the opening ceremony of the Milano Cortina Winter Games.
Jackson, who won gold in the women's 500 meters in Beijing in 2022, will be back to defend her title and compete in the 1,000 meters as well. This will mark her third Olympic appearance.
"It'll definitely give me a lot of motivation, because just walking out into opening ceremonies even without carrying the flag, it's this amazing feeling of like, ‘OK, we're here. We're at the Olympics. We're surrounded by all these amazing people who have worked so hard to get to this point,'" Jackson said Wednesday. "Just even being in the opening ceremonies, that's just like the start of the games, but it's always just kind of like a breathtaking feeling. I think carrying the flag is just going to add to that, and I'm really looking forward to it."
Del Duca – a sergeant in the U.S. Army stationed in Lake Placid, New York – made his Olympic Winter Games debut in Beijing, and has been in the sport for over a decade. He is part of the U.S. Army's World Class Athlete Program (WCAP).
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