Food at Winter Olympics Village praised after backlash at Paris Games

The world’s athletes have descended on Italy in the hopes of achieving their gold medal dreams at the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics.

While the opening ceremony is scheduled for Friday (6 February), the 25th edition of the Games is already underway, with curling, ice hockey, and men’s big air snowboarding competitions taking place before the 8pm local time event.

Following the backlash that the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics received, it appears organisers have learned a thing or two when it comes to cooking for some of the globe’s most prestigious athletes.

Why Paris Olympics food wasn’t ‘good enough’

Previously, six-time medallist Adam Peaty, 31, ridiculed the catering at the French games, claiming it wasn’t ‘good enough for the level the athletes are expected to perform’.

In an interview with the i, he also alleged there weren’t enough protein options and that there were allegedly ‘worms in the fish’.

American gymnast Hezly Rivera, 17, also said at the time: “I don’t think it’s very good, at least what we’re having in the dining hall. I definitely think French food is good, but what we’re having in there, I don’t think it’s the best. But it gets the job done."

A Paris spokesperson said at the time that they had been ‘listening to the athletes and taking their feedback very seriously’.

Food on offer at 2026 Winter Olympics

The good news is that organisers of the Milano-Cortina games are prioritising food that will ‘enhance the performance of the athletes’, as per Elisabetta Salvadori, head of food and beverages for the Winter Olympics 2026.

These staple, high-energy items include plain pasta, basic sauces and straightforward proteins.

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

Grilled cheese, smoked scamorza, plain turkey breast, and salmon steak are also available for the sportspeople, as well as fruit and salad, according to reports.

It’s understood that up to 4,500 breakfasts, lunches and dinners are being prepared each day at the Milan Olympic Village.

Nearly 4,000 will be whipped up in Cortina, and 2,300 in Predazzo.

There are three other Olympic villages boasting menus which took around a year to curate. These are in Anterselva, Livigno, and Bormio.

The main Olympic Villages, Milan and Cortina, have food halls with chefs behind six stations, according to The Olympian.

Food is reportedly served 24 hours a day on a rotating schedule.

Athletes give insight into more food at 2026 Winter Olympics

Matt Smith, a cross-country skier competing from South Africa, has been sharing insights from the athlete cafeterias with his TikTok followers.

According to his vlogs, breakfast items include carbohydrates, such as cereals, pizza, pasta, bread, grains, and pastries, as well as eggs, bacon, yoghurts, and different types of milk.

During a press conference, Jess Perlmutter, a Team USA snowboarder, said: “I’ve had the best pasta I’ve ever had here, and I had gelato last night. So it’s been really fun.”

On TikTok, Canadian Women’s Hockey player Natalie Spooner has revealed that she’s been sampling different kinds of chocolate and eating various desserts, including a pudding served in a plastic cup.

Meanwhile, Team USA ice dancers Christina Carreira and Isabeau Levitt, as well as South Korea’s Hannah Lim, have proclaimed that a cake filled with custard cream is their version of the viral Parisian chocolate muffin, made popular by Norwegian swimmer Henrik Christiansen.

Brobible reported that there are also unlimited vending machines in the villages.

In an interview with Reuters, Dutch speed skater Jenning de Boo claimed that the food wasn’t exactly ‘Michelin-star quality’ but that it was ‘quite adequate’.

“I had pasta, a salad and some chicken. So everything an athlete needs is there.”