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Organizers of the Milan-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics have sold almost 70 percent of tickets, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) confirmed on Wednesday, hoping the ongoing torch relay will boost sales in the final stages.
A total of 1.4 million tickets have been issued for the Games, which run from February 6-22, of which around 1 million tickets were sold and 255,000 tickets were issued for the Paralympics, to be held a few weeks later.
The Games torch relay for the Olympics began last week, with the torch carried across the country to drum up enthusiasm among Italians.
“We are close to 70% at this stage,” Olympic Games executive director Christophe Duby told a news conference after the IOC Executive Board meeting, which also included a progress report from Italian organisers.
He said he hoped the relay would boost sales, especially for the Paralympics.
“It’s always a little difficult. There (Paralympic ticket sales) we’re lagging behind. We’re hoping the torch relay will help,” Mr Dubi said.
He did not provide information on the number of tickets sold for the Paralympics, to be held between March 6-15.
Olympic organizers are racing to complete and test competition venues, with the ice hockey venue in Milan being one of the projects under a tight deadline from the start.
Recently it came into the spotlight again over the size of its rink, following reports that it was smaller than the standard used in NHL venues.
The IOC said there was no further discussion on the size, adding that all stakeholders, including the NHL and players as well as international federations, are in agreement. This month’s ice hockey test schedule has been moved up to early January and will now include spectators.
IOC President Kirsty Coventry said, “We are 58 days away and the Games are just around the corner. We are very impressed and pleased with what we are seeing and hearing. We need to keep an eye on our pulse.”