By Giselda Vagnoni
MILAN, Feb 4 (Reuters) – Spectators gathering in Milan’s iconic San Siro stadium for Friday’s Olympic opening ceremony can leave their umbrellas at home, Italy’s air force meteorological service said, forecasting a welcome break in the rain that has drenched the city for days.
Forecasters say the weather pattern that has brought persistent heavy showers to northern Italy is set to ease just in time for the global event, which will also be staged in co-host Cortina d’Ampezzo, marking the first “widespread ceremony” in the history of the Games.
“Although we will still see some rainfall in the hours and days leading up to the ceremony, conditions on Friday evening are expected to improve,” Colonel Guido Guidi of the Italian Aeronautica Militare (Air Force) told Reuters in an interview.
“There should be some clearing, dry weather and, above all, no rain.”
Cortina, a town nestled among the jagged limestone peaks of the Dolomites, is also expected to see a gradual improvement.
Guidi noted that while the sky there will remain overcast and the air moist, no snow or rain is forecast for Friday.
“It will be a rather grey day, but it will improve only towards the evening,” he said.
NO MAJOR SNOWFALLS, OR SHARP TEMPERATURE SWINGS ON THE HORIZON
The Winter Games, scheduled from February 6 to 22, will see competitions staged across five provinces along the Alps.
Snow has been falling in the mountains in recent days.
Looking ahead to the first week of competition, Guidi said the northern regions should enjoy relatively stable conditions compared with the unsettled weather lingering over central and southern Italy.
Athletes and spectators can expect intervals of sunshine, some cloud cover and the possibility of light precipitation around Wednesday. Later in the week, winds could strengthen, especially over the central Alps.
Temperatures will stay broadly in line with early February averages.
“It won’t be particularly cold,” Guidi said, adding that mountain snow conditions should remain predictable and not shaped by unusual weather events.
CONCERN ABOUT AVALANCHE RISKS NOT EXPECTED TO INTENSIFY
With no major snowfalls or big temperature swings on the horizon, Guidi said the stability of the snowpack should remain “fairly stationary,” though it will still need to be assessed daily.
The Italian Air Force Meteorological Service works with Carabinieri Forest Service and the Alpine Troops Command to monitor snow conditions across the Italian Alps and their joint unit Meteomont issues risk assessments that guide rescue teams, local authorities, ski operators, and the public.
Asked whether the number of avalanches has increased in the last decade due to warmer weather, Meteomont’s Lieutenant Colonel Davide Dallaga said they had not.
“I can tell you that the number of avalanches varies from year to year, but the overall trend remains constant,” he told Reuters from the Alpine Troops headquarters in Bolzano.
With more people heading into the mountains for leisure, particularly into snowy terrain away from major paths, Dallaga, who is part of the Joint Task Force Milano Cortina 2026, offered a simple warning.
“Be equipped with the prescribed individual safety devices — an avalanche transceiver, a shovel and, if possible, an airbag backpack that inflates when an avalanche is triggered.”
(Reporting by Giselda VagnoniEditing by Keith Weir)
