Verona Arena closes Milan-Cortina with art-filled Olympic farewell
The Milan-Cortina Winter Games closed with a 2.5-hour ceremony inside Verona Arena that celebrated Italian art and culture—opera, dance and contemporary music—featuring stars like Roberto Bolle, Achille Lauro and Gabry Ponte as about 1,500 athletes entered behind flag bearers from 92 nations. Team USA highlighted the event with a record 12 golds across 16 sports, and roughly 12,000 spectators witnessed the ceremony, which included a remembrance segment for fallen athletes. The closing ended with extinguished flames on two cauldrons and a Verona-friendly light show in place of fireworks, ahead of Los Angeles 2028 and the 2030 Games in the French Alps and Nice.
