Five events and athletes to watch at the 2026 Winter Olympics

This year’s Olympic winter games will be hosted by Italy across the month of February with the opening ceremony taking place on Friday, Feb. 6.

Italian cities Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo will be the hosts, but some events will take place in other cities including Anterselva/Antholz, Bormio, Livigno, Predazzo and Verano.

Team USA will send 232 athletes to compete, including 98 returning athletes that have accumulated 18 Olympic gold medals.

The USA TODAY Graphics Team created visual explainers to some of the key events to watch this year, including the ski mountaineering events that are making their Olympic debut. Read more about these events below:

This story will be updated as new graphics stories are published.