The Olympic Cauldron: Meaning, Lighting and the 2026 Designs

On February 6, 2026 two Olympic cauldrons will be lit at once in Italy — one in Piazza Dibona in Cortina d'Ampezzo and the other at Arco della Pace in Milan. The simultaneous lighting will mark the culmination of the Opening Ceremony and the end of a torch relay that winds its way through the host country.

The cauldron tradition dates back to the 1928 Games in Amsterdam, with the torch relay added at the 1936 Berlin Olympics, and it draws on ancient Greek practice of keeping eternal flames. In recent years designs have pushed boundaries: the 2024 Paris cauldron took the form of a fuel-free ring of simulated fire at the base of a hovering balloon, a nod to the city’s history with early balloon flight.

Celebrities and everyday people serve as torch bearers — for example, Heated Rivalry stars Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie participated in 2026 — but only one person or group actually lights the cauldron to signal the start of the Games.

Italy, Cortina d'Ampezzo, Milan