The Olympic and Paralympic Torches of Milano Cortina 2026 are returning home. On Monday, October 13, during the closing day of Expo 2025 Osaka, the Italy Pavilion hosted the Closing Ceremony of the international event, during which the Essential Torches were symbolically handed back into the hands of the Fondazione Milano Cortina 2026.
Representing the Fondazione was CEO Andrea Varnier, accompanied by Martina Caironi, Paralympic champion and 100m T63 gold medalist in Paris 2024, and Carolina Kostner, figure skating icon and Olympic bronze medalist in Sochi 2014. The ceremony took place at Piazza Italia, in front of the Pavilion, in the presence of authorities, media, a large audience, and international athletes such as Japanese figure skater Satoko Miyahara.
The event at the Expo 2025 Osaka
The Closing Ceremony was opened with speeches by the Commissioner General for Italy at Expo 2025, Mario Vattani, and the Consul General in Osaka, Filippo Manara. Andrea Varnier, CEO of the Fondazione Milano Cortina 2026, then spoke, thanking the Italy Pavilion for showcasing the excellences, creativity, and passion of our country, emphasizing that “there could be no better place than Expo to start the journey of the torches.”
“It is incredibly moving to bring the torches back to Italy,” added Carolina Kostner, recalling how the Olympic Flame symbolises the union of peoples and their cultures, as well as the dreams and connection made possible through sport.
These sporting values were also echoed by Martina Caironi, who evoked a universal message of peace and expressed the hope that the Paralympic Flame would convey a message of inclusion: “Paralympic athletes show the world that disability is just one characteristic of a person, something that can be overcome and transformed into a remarkable strength in the eyes of all.”
To celebrate the event, an ice skating rink open to the public was set up in front of the Italy Pavilion: a tangible sign of cultural and sporting connection between Italy and Japan, as well as a preview of the spirit that will animate Milano Cortina 2026 starting from next February 6.
The Essential Torches
The Olympic and Paralympic Torches, called Essential, are symbols of unity, inclusion, and the dualism typical of Milano Cortina 2026. For their creation, Eni (Premium Partner of the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games) and Versalis (Official Supporter of the Games) chose Studio Carlo Ratti Associati for the design development and Cavagna Group for the engineering and production.
The Essential Torches were unveiled last April 14, simultaneously at the Triennale in Milano and in the same Italy Pavilion in Osaka, always accompanied by the athletes and Milano Cortina 2026 Ambassadors Martina Caironi and Carolina Kostner. Now they will return home after representing Italy in one of the most significant contexts globally.
Their return marks the prelude to a new phase in view of the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic and Paralympic Games. On November 26, the Olympic Torch will set off from Greece and then arrive in Italy for its journey across the country, covering 12,000 km in 63 days. It will be an incredible journey through Italian territories, concluding on February 6 at San Siro for the Opening Ceremony of the Winter Olympic Games. The Paralympic Torch, on the other hand, will begin its route on February 23, then reaching Verona on March 6 for the Opening Ceremony of the Paralympic Games.
AloJapan.com