Pasta, pizza popular as Milano Cortina looks to learn from Paris Games food issues

MILAN, Feb 3 : Ensuring that meals serve as fuel to maximise athletes’ performance shaped everything from menus to kitchen workflows for organisers of the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics after the mistakes that sparked criticism at the Paris 2024 Games.

About 2,900 athletes from 92 countries are arriving in Italy to take part in the global showpiece event.

"Food must be actually prepared and served to enhance the performance of the athletes in the Olympics which most of them have worked and trained for years," said Elisabetta Salvadori, head of food and beverages for the Games, which Milan is co-hosting with the mountain resort of Cortina d'Ampezzo from February 6-22.

At the Paris Olympics, several delegations complained about the quantity and quality of the food, forcing organisers to make late adjustments after grievances over egg rationing and a limited supply of protein options, with some athletes demanding more meat to satisfy their nutritional needs. 

Up to 4,500 breakfasts, lunches and dinners will be prepared each day at the Milan Village, nearly 4,000 in Cortina and 2,300 in Predazzo. The design of the menus took around a year.

Salvadori said athletes across the Olympic villages and other competition venues were being offered a broad range of dishes but often end up choosing simple, high‑energy foods such as plain pasta, basic sauces and straightforward proteins.

"Then, of course, they have other gastronomic choices such as lasagna, gnocchi and desserts."

Unsurprisingly, the Olympics food manager said pasta was one of the most popular dishes, usually served plain, or with ragu or tomato sauce, and prepared espresso style. “Pasta is just cooked behind the athletes,” she said.

In a nation that prides itself on its