Introducing the Milano Memo, CNN’s daily newsletter from the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina
The only time I’ve cried while covering a sporting event — for actual sports-related and not deadline-induced stress reasons — was the gold medal game in women’s hockey at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea.
Team USA beat its rival, the long-dominant Team Canada, in a dramatic shootout. In the jubilation that immediately ensued, I watched a father of one of the athletes pounding on the glass, tears streaming down his face, begging to be allowed to run on to the rink to celebrate with his daughter. “It’s our girls out there!” he shouted. Boom: tears.
I’m getting a little misty-eyed right now, as I have every time I’ve told that story since. I was not, and am not, a women’s ice hockey fan. That was probably the first game I’d ever attended, but that’s what makes the Olympics so special. They speedrun the appeal of all sports – namely, that the superhuman athletic feats and the high-pressure stakes provide an excuse to emotionally invest in the lives of people we’re meeting at their peak.
I love the Olympics. And trust me, even if you don’t yet, you could love the Olympics too. There is a competition storyline or a human-interest angle or an obscure display of physicality for everyone. And if you’re actually a secret expert or a sleeper fan of one of these sports? (Looking at you, skimo heads.) Congratulations, your moment has come to be an unrepentant know-it-all on social media.
Here at the Milano Memo, we want to serve you an aperitivo spread of Olympic goodness and weirdness. I, Hannah Keyser, hate being cold and will not be in Milan. But we have a fantastic team stationed across the apparently sprawling Olympic infrastructure. You’ll hear from Coy Wire, Amanda Davies, Dana O’Neil, Ben Church and others who will be across this vast 2026 Winter Olympics.
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Every day of the Olympics starting with the Opening Ceremony on Friday February 6, we’ll send links to the great longform work that the team is producing, plus original dispatches, overheard quotes, our favorite video clips, photos, ephemera, and other bits and bobs(leds) to keep you up on all things Olympic.
Look for us in the early evening. It’ll either be me or Ben (his will have that authentic Italian flair) in your inbox.
To sign up, follow the link here.
