Two opposing halves come together to form the minimalist medals for next year’s Milano Cortina Winter Games, marking the first time the Winter Olympics will have two host cities.
Each half of the medal is defined by a contrasting texture – one polished, the other frosted – to capture this milestone and represent the group effort between athletes and their teams that’s required to win the world’s most significant sporting competition.
“We wanted the design to reflect the idea that victory is never a solitary moment – it’s built through collective strength, support, and unity,” explained Raffaella Paniè, director of brand, identity and look for the Fondazione Milano Cortina 2026.
“This story lives in the surfaces of the medals, where two textures meet and begin a narrative shaped not only by the athletes, but by everyone who helped them get there.”
The cleaved design, courtesy of a multi-disciplinary team led by Paniè, draws on Italy’s avant-garde design movement of the 1960s and 70s, which counted architecture group Superstudio and designers like Ettore Sottsass and Alessandro Mendini among its proponents.
Its two halves are joined at an angle, bisecting the iconic Olympic logo of five interlocking rings, with subtly inclined surfaces and raised edges bringing a sense of movement and dynamism to the medals.
“We conceived a medal that represents purity and a return to essence,” Paniè said.
All 1,146 medals needed for the games will be manufactured by the Italian State Mint, the Istituto Poligrafico e Zecca dello Stato (IPZS) in Rome, using waste gold, silver and bronze recovered from the mint’s own production and induction furnaces powered entirely by renewable energy.
“Just like the Olympic torches, the medals are a perfect synthesis of design and tradition – two cornerstones of the Italian way of thinking,” said Attilio Fontana, president of Italy’s Lombardy region, where the games will be held.
“Out of superstition, I won’t say more, but it’s clear that the hope is to see them being worn by the athletes around their necks, dressed in the Italian uniform.”
Other design details that have already been unveiled for next year’s Winter Games include an angular logo that was decided by public vote and a duo of torches designed by Carlo Ratti.
All images courtesy of Fondazione Milano Cortina 2026.
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