VAL GARDENA, Italy, Dec 23 (Reuters) - Pressure is mounting on Italian authorities to accelerate preparations for the Milano Cortina Olympics amid funding gaps and unusually warm temperatures, even as the head of world skiing openly advocates a fundamental overhaul of how future Winter Games are hosted.
With the Games due to start in February, International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) president Johan Eliasch said Italy’s challenges were symptomatic of deeper structural issues facing winter sport, as rising costs, climate pressure and under-used infrastructure fuel calls for a rotating model of permanent Olympic hosts.
