On the second full day of competition at the 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics, eight gold medals are up for grabs as Chinese athletes compete in key events including snowboarding, cross-country skiing, speed skating, and luge. Athletes like Li Minglin and Liu Hanbin carry China's hopes for more honors.
The 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics kicked off recently, with Chinese athletes settling into the Milan Olympic Village, adapting to Italian customs while preparing for competitions. Built on a former rail yard in Milan's southern suburbs, the village accommodates nearly 1,600 athletes and offers diverse dining and entertainment options. Speed skater Ning Zhongyan, spotted enjoying pasta pomodoro, said: "I am okay with pasta, and to be honest, I think it (Italian food) has a lot in common with Chinese food."
Elisabetta Salvadori, head of food and beverage services, noted that up to 4,500 meal portions are prepared daily, including 10,000 eggs and approximately 450 kilograms of pasta. The menu features plain rice, pasta ragu, pomodoro, and occasional lasagne, guided by the principle that "food is fuel" to meet athletes' needs.
Village amenities include an AI-powered pin-trading booth by Alibaba, a plant shop, beauty booth for makeup and massages, and a gaming center with foosball and VR simulators. Chinese figure skater Han Cong remarked: "It never gets dull here, with so many activities going on and a lot of fun stuff to do, it helps us release stress pretty well." Team China's building features red flags and cartoon panda stickers since January 30, drawing international visitors. The China House at Villa Clerici in Milan offers free cultural experiences like calligraphy, embroidery, and porcelain arts, by reservation.
On Sunday, the second full competition day, Chinese athletes target eight golds. In women's and men's parallel giant slalom snowboarding qualifications and knockouts, Gong Naiying, Bai Xinhui, Dong Yuyue compete in the women's event, while Bi Ye and Ban Xuefu race in the men's. In the men's 2x10km cross-country skiathlon, 24-year-old Li Minglin, a 2025 Asian Winter Games relay champion, represents China. Nineteen-year-old Liu Hanbin, silver medalist at the same Games, skates in the men's 5,000m speed skating.
In men's luge singles rounds three and four, Bao Zhenyu ranks 24th with a combined time of 1:49.544 after two runs, with the field cut to the top 20 before the final.
Speed skating star Gao Tingyu defended his Beijing 2022 men's 500m gold on Saturday, aiming to be the first since 1994 to repeat. He told Xinhua: "In the past, I relied more on sheer drive... Now, as one of the senior members, I am more composed." Facing U.S. rival Jordan Stolz, Gao views the competition as driving progress.
