Milano Cortina 2026 reveals the complete route of the Paralympic Torch Relay

Milano Cortina 2026 has announced the complete route of the Paralympic Flame. From 24 February to 6 March, the Flame will travel over 2,000 kilometres across Italy, involving 501 torchbearers and celebrating the start of the Paralympic Winter Games in cities and communities through Flame Festivals and Flame Visits – events that will bring a strong and shared message of unity and inclusion. 

The route will culminate on 6 March at the Arena di Verona, which will stage the Opening Ceremony of the Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games, the world’s largest sporting event for athletes with disabilities. 

“The Paralympic Torch Relay tells the story of the deepest legacy of the Games: its cultural and social impact. Each stage will be an opportunity to celebrate sport as a force capable of uniting communities, promoting inclusion and looking to the future with confidence and responsibility, bring to Italy the values of the Paralympic Movement,” says Giovanni Malagò, President of Fondazione Milano Cortina 2026.

“It is a journey that speaks to the whole country, involving regions, institutions and citizens in a great collective embrace. The Paralympic Flame will become the symbol of an Italy that believes in merit, courage and the ability to overcome all limits, paying tribute to the athletes who embody these extraordinary values every day.”

🔥❄️ Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Torch Relay route revealed 🔥❄️

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Allianz Presenting Partner of the Paralympic Torch Relay

Allianz, Global Insurance Partner of the Olympic and Paralympic Movements since 2021, has been working with the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) since 2006 to promote inclusivity and resilience. 

As Presenting Partner, it will accompany the Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Torch Relay, sharing its commitment to promoting sport as a tool for participation and integration. 

Giacomo Campora, CEO of Allianz Italy, said, “Allianz is supporting the Paralympic Torch Relay in Italy as Presenting Partner, to promote and bring more and more people closer to the values of the Paralympic Movement, which the Allianz Group has been supporting since 2006.”

A shared journey 

The Paralympic Flame will be lit on 24 February in Stoke Mandeville, United Kingdom, the historic birthplace of the Paralympic Movement. From here, it will begin a journey that will show how sport can drive change. 

From the United Kingdom, the Flame will return to Italy, arriving in Turin, the first stop on its journey in the host country. The Flame’s journey will pay tribute to the country’s Paralympic history, from the first edition of the Paralympic Games in Rome in 1960 to Torino 2006, the first Paralympic Winter Games that took place in Italy, marking a fundamental step in promoting inclusion through sport. 

From 24 February to 2 March, the Flame will light up the five planned Flame Festivals: Turin (24 February), Milan (25 February), Bolzano (27 February), Trento (28 February) and Trieste (2 March), transforming each stage into an opportunity for participation and celebration of the Paralympic community and its values.

At the same time, the Relay will be enriched by Flame Visits, public events organised by Allianz and Fondazione Milano Cortina 2026 to extend the Paralympic Torch Relay to central and southern Italy, with four stops scheduled for 26 February in Rome, 27 February in Bari, 2 March in Naples and 3 March in Bologna. Also on 3 March, the five Flames from the Flame Festivals will arrive in Cortina d'Ampezzo, converging in the evocative Union Ceremony and giving life to a single Paralympic Flame. 

“The Paralympic Torch Relay is a story in motion, a shining thread that connects places, stories and people. Each stage is designed to be a moment of authentic encounter, capable of leaving a mark and broadening the embrace of the Paralympic Games with a contemporary, exciting and deeply human language. The Paralympic Flame carries with it shared values and a deep sense of belonging. We want each stage to leave a memory that continues to live on beyond the passage of the Flame," says Maria Laura Iascone, Director of Ceremonies for Fondazione Milano Cortina 2026.

After the Union Ceremony in Cortina, on 4 March, the Paralympic Flame will travel through the streets of Auronzo di Cadore, Pieve di Cadore, Longarone, Belluno, Treviso and Mestre, until it reaches Venice, where the first stage celebration will take place, transforming its passage into a moment of connection with citizens, schools and associations.

On 5 March, the journey will continue through Castelfranco Veneto, Asolo, Bassano del Grappa, Thiene and Vicenza, until it reaches Padua for the second stage celebration and spreading enthusiasm and excitement throughout the Veneto region. 

On 6 March, after passing through Monselice, Rovigo, Legnago, Nogara and Isola della Scala, the Paralympic Flame will conclude its journey at the Arena di Verona, the venue for the Opening Ceremony. 

The Opening Ceremony will be a historic moment: for the first time, a UNESCO World Heritage Site will host the opening of the Paralympics, writing a new page in the history of the Games. The arrival of the Flame in Verona will mark the official start of the Paralympic Winter Games.