PREDAZZO, Italy — An hour before the start of the ski jumping portion of Thursday’s Nordic combined competition, Giacomo Di Pumpo stands in the stairwell outside the broadcast building, snow coming down all around, trying to stay warm. In black cargo pants and a black hoodie, studs in his ears and silver chains on his wrist, Di Pumpo will soon be transformed into a massive, smiling stoat.
Tina and Milo, the 2026 Olympic and Paralympic mascots, have been the breakout stars of the Milan Cortina Games. Walking through one of the stadiums, the mascots were constantly stopped by fans, volunteers and athletes asking for a photo. The mini plush dolls have become the most prized Olympic merch, selling out immediately across the Olympic venues.
Tina and Milo are stoats, relatives of the weasel found in Europe, Asia and North America.
Inside one of the stoat costumes is Di Pumpo, a 19-year-old student from Milan who spends his days dancing and posing at the ski jumping stadium in Predazzo and the cross-country skiing stadium in Tesero.
Di Pumpo had no mascot experience before his roles as Tina and Milo. In September, he started an economics degree at the University of Milan, but in January, he decided the program wasn’t for him, and plans to re-enroll in the fall.
“I wanted to do communication, but it was really late to start it (the degree),” he said. “So I just said, I’m going to work, I’m gonna find a job. And I found the mascot of the Olympics.”
A friend had connected Di Pumpo with an events and marketing agency in the fall, and Di Pumpo worked for the company selling ramen. In December, he saw that the company was managing the Olympic mascots.
“I called my best friend, and I said, ‘Bro, there is a job doing the mascot in the Olympics,’” Di Pumpo said. “Now he’s doing it in Anterselva (host of biathlon), and I’m doing it in Val di Fiemme, and we are working together.”
“I called my best friend, and I said, ‘Bro, there is a job doing the mascot in the Olympics,’” Giacomo Di Pumpo said of how he ended up as a performer inside the Tina costume. (Rebecca Tauber / The Athletic)
There are five mascot performers, one in each cluster. After an afternoon of training, Di Pumpo headed from Milan to Val di Fiemme, the cluster hosting ski jumping, cross-country skiing and Nordic combined, to be the resident Tina. He’ll stay through the Paralympics in March, working as Milo — a stoat who was born without one of his legs, and uses his tail to walk.
While he doesn’t have a background in dance or theater, Di Pumpo has quickly learned the ropes. Before becoming Tina, he worked as a steward at Milan’s iconic San Siro Stadium, which played host to the opening ceremony, so he’s accustomed to a packed, rowdy stadium atmosphere.
“I don’t think it’s really a job, because it’s really fun,” he said. “… You just need to be a happy person, and you just need to dance.”
Di Pumpo said he loves spreading joy to fans of the Games, who amp him up with “Tina! Tina! Tina!” chants as he waves to the crowd. He gets lots of requests for photos and dance moves, especially the “6-7” hand gesture.
The only drawback has been the weather — with warm, sunny conditions, it gets hot in that costume. He has to wear three pairs of socks to make the shoes fit.
“When I take it off, I’m sweating so much every time,” said Di Pumpo, who considers the dancing a workout.
After weeks in the costume, Di Pumpo feels a sense of connection with Milo and Tina, who were designed by Italian students at a school in Calabria, where his mother is from. Above all, he’s grateful to have played the role for his home city’s Olympics.
“It’s something important not just for me but for Milan,” he said. “I really love my city, and I love Italy so much.”
