Francesca Lollobrigida's Golden Birthday Celebration at Winter Olympics
Italy's Francesca Lollobrigida delivered a breathtaking performance on the opening day of the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, securing gold in the women's 3000m speed skating event. The victory was made even more special as it coincided with her 35th birthday, with Lollobrigida breaking the Olympic record in a time of 54.28 seconds.
Emotional Victory and Family Moment
Even before the final pairing had completed their race, Lollobrigida's two-year-old son Tommaso was being ushered toward the track. When it became clear that neither Joy Beune of the Netherlands nor Canada's Isabelle Weidemann could surpass her phenomenal time, the Italian sprinted through the stadium to embrace her son. "This medal means a lot, but also a demonstration – the fact of not giving up, to start a family, to become a mother and to come back to race," an emotional Lollobrigida explained afterwards.
The Milano Ice Park erupted as Lollobrigida crossed the finish line, knocking an impressive two and a half seconds off Irene Schouten's previous record from the 2022 Beijing Games. This marked Lollobrigida's first Olympic gold medal in her fourth Games appearance, having previously won silver in Beijing.
Swedish Dominance in Cross-Country Skiing
Meanwhile, Sweden landed a significant blow in their historic rivalry with Norway during the women's 10km+10km skiathlon. Swedish skiers Frida Karlsson and Ebba Andersson broke away from the field to secure gold and silver respectively, leaving Norway's Astrid Øyre Slind to be overtaken by compatriot Heidi Weng for bronze.
This Swedish one-two represents a strong opening statement in the cross-country skiing disciplines, where Norway has traditionally dominated with 52 gold medals compared to Sweden's 32 prior to these Games.
Dramatic Downhill Action
The day's first medal event saw Switzerland's Franjo von Allmen claim gold in the men's downhill skiing with a stunning performance that left favourite Marco Odermatt off the podium entirely. Von Allmen, the reigning world downhill champion, finished seven-tenths of a second faster than Odermatt, who had been expected to challenge for gold.
"It feels like a movie," said Von Allmen, whose journey to Olympic glory included crowdfunding at age 17 after his father's death and working construction jobs to support his skiing career. Italy celebrated two medals in the event through Giovanni Franzoni's silver and Dominik Paris's bronze, marking a poignant moment for the Italian team following the tragic death of skier Matteo Franzoso last year.
Early Medal Table Standings
After the first day of competition, Italy finds itself among the early leaders in the medal table alongside Japan and Norway, each having secured one gold, one silver, and one bronze medal. Sweden sits in fourth position with one gold and one silver, while Switzerland has claimed one gold medal.
Other Notable Developments
The International Olympic Committee has insisted there is "no outbreak" of norovirus at the Games despite five women's ice hockey players testing positive. Finland had their opening game postponed as a result before suffering a 5-0 defeat to the United States on Saturday.
In a separate development, Great Britain's skeleton team will not be permitted to use their new helmets after the Court of Arbitration for Sport upheld a ban against the equipment.
Looking Ahead to Day Two
Sunday's schedule promises more thrilling action across multiple disciplines:
- Alpine Skiing: All eyes will be on 41-year-old Lindsey Vonn as she bids for glory in the women's downhill despite competing with a ruptured ACL.
- Cross-Country Skiing: Norway's Johannes Høsflot Klæbo begins his extraordinary pursuit of six gold medals in the men's 10km+10km skiathlon.
- Speed Skating: The men's 5,000m event features skaters going out in pairs with one shot at setting the fastest time.
- Figure Skating: The team event concludes with free skating categories including pairs, women's singles, and men's singles.
Great Britain's curling team maintained their perfect record in the mixed doubles event with victories over Canada and the United States on Saturday. Team GB's Jen Dodds even extended an invitation to Formula One world champion Lando Norris to try "actual curling" after McLaren shared a video of him attempting a table-top version of the sport.
