Mauro Nespoli among eight archers carrying the Olympic torch ahead of Milano Cortina 2026
Italian Olympic medallist Mauro Nespoli was part of the Olympic torch relay for the Winter Olympics in Milano Cortina in his home region of Pavia, Italy on 14th January, part of a long sequence of Italian archers taking part in the ceremony which marks the build-up to both Winter and Summer Games.
“It was a great honour to be selected as a torchbearer. Hosting the Games in Italy is certainly very exciting, and being part of this movement once again is a huge incentive to aim for Los Angeles and my sixth Games,” he said.
As usual, the Olympic torch relay features athletes and others carrying the Olympic flame around the host country, in advance of the cauldron lighting at the opening ceremony. For Milano Cortina, this process started at the end of November in Greece – the home of the Olympics – and will continue in Italy until the opening ceremony on 6 February.
“It was a very emotional moment. I ran the last 200 metres between San Martino Siccomario and Pavia. Being a torchbearer in front of my family, friends and the people who came out onto the streets to cheer on the passing flame will be an indelible memory.”
“Seeing the same emotion in the eyes of the people present that I had during the opening ceremony in Beijing reinforces the idea of how much the Olympics are an event that unites the world,” said Mauro.
“I really like all the sports that will be competing in the Winter Games. I have skied a few times in the past, but with very poor results. I am fascinated by curling, its precision and strategy. Could it be any other way?” he laughed.
After Mauro carried the torch in Pavia on 14 January, his teammate and fellow Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games individual medallist Lucilla Boari carried it on a leg on 19th January in her hometown of Mantua, along the 'Prince's Road' (La Via Del Principe).
“The importance of being at home and walking with the Olympic flame in my hand along that stretch made my experience so important, so exciting,” said Boari.
One of the most decorated archers in history, London 2012 gold medallist Michele Frangilli also carried the torch on 15 January, by Lake Maggiore at the base of the Italian Alps, calling it “a once-in-a-lifetime experience, and one that means even more to me, having participated in four Olympic Games as an athlete.”
He in turn was preceded by Paralympian Eleonora Sarti who carried the torch on a 200m leg in central Bologna on 10 January. “I was very happy to have been contacted because of the values I try to convey in sport and in life. I was incredulous and really excited, and until I had the torch in my hand, I couldn't believe it,” said the 2015 World Champion.
“There were people shouting my name and cheering me on behind me, the towers were lit up, and I had the lit torch in my hand. It was an immense thrill,” she added.
They follow Claudia Mandia, the 2016 Olympian who carried the torch in Salerno on 21 December, and the Greek six-time Olympian Evangelia Psarra, who was part of a leg in Thessaloniki, Greece on 2 December.
Paralympians Stefano Travisani and Francesco Tomaselli along with para-archer and multi-sport athlete Dalia Demano are also on the list to carry the flame in the build-up to the Games.
Archers have played a role in previous Olympic torch relays, as well as becoming flagbearers in the opening ceremony of the Games.
Marcus D’Almeida carried the torch in a leg of the relay in Sao Paulo ahead of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, while six-time Olympian Alison Williamson carried the torch in Great Britain ahead of London 2012, as did fellow GBR team member Naomi Folkard, Paralympian Mel Clarke, and compounder Nicky Hunt.
Bérengère Schuh was part of the torch relay in the lead up to Paris 2024, as was Paralympian Fabrice Meunier.
Archer Margaret Maughan, the first-ever British Paralympic gold medalist in 1960, was given the honour of lighting the cauldron at the London 2012 Paralympic Games opening ceremony.
Most famously, Paralympian Antonio Rebollo lit the Olympic flame at Barcelona 1992 with a flaming arrow – one of the most iconic moments in the history of the sport.
There are no archery events at the Winter Games, although it has been previously suggested that ski archery – essentially, a form of biathlon using recurve bows instead of rifles – could be a part of the competition one day.
The opening ceremony for Milano Cortina 2026 takes place on 6 February.
