The first medals of the Milan Winter Olympics have been awarded! But the presentation quickly caught global attention for being different from the usual. When Canadian veteran Valerie Maltais stepped onto the podium to receive bronze in the women’s 3000m speed skating, cameras noted a shift to a new format.

As reported by Ben Steiner on X: “The medal ceremonies are different at Milan Cortina 2026, and we see Valerie Maltais do it first for Canada.

With the Games so spread out, athletes receive their medals as soon as they step onto the podium at the venue. Since 2006, it had been two separate ceremonies,” wrote the reporter.

For context: at the Winter Games, the medal ceremony or the “victory ceremony” would happen at a dedicated plaza (for example, the Beijing Medals Plaza in 2022) where the medals would be handed. While during the presentation, an athlete would stand on a temporary podium in the venue for flowers and a fleeting celebration.

This time around, the Games aren’t happening just at a single venue. It spans from the metropolitan hub of Milan to the mountain clusters around Cortina d’Ampezzo. So, the officials likely made this decision.

This brings the format closer to the Summer Olympics where medals are usually presented immediately after the event, often in the same stadium or arena.

So far, 11 medal events at the Milan Winter Olympics have been completed, with the host country Italy is currently leading the standings with a total of 3 medals. And the first gold for the leading country came from this very ceremony.

Cheers from the crowd accompanied as soon as Francesca Lollobrigida was handed the gold medal,  followed by Norway’s Ragne Wiklund, who won silver, and ultimately Valarie. However, the gold medalist soon got emotional and that became the talking point of the ceremony.

An emotional moment at the Winter Olympics medal ceremony

Francesca Lollobrigida’s journey to Olympic gold in the women’s 3000m speed skating was more than just a performance. It was a statement in itself.

“Seriously, this one is for everyone who believed in me. But also for the people who said, ‘No, maybe she can’t do it. They gave me the power to prove myself,” she said following her gold medal performance at the Winter Olympics.

Competing on her 35th birthday in front of a roaring home crowd in Milan, the four-time Olympian smashed the Olympic record by over two-and-a-half seconds, claiming Italy’s first speed skating gold medal at the 2026 Games.

Her emotional celebration saw her immediately leave the ice to find her young son, Tommaso. “The message I wanted to show is that I didn’t choose between skating and being a mum. I stopped after my medal in Beijing. I was on the top of the world. I am really proud of myself that I came back,” she added.

Lollobrigida proudly demonstrated that she didn’t choose between being an Olympic champion or a beloved mother; she has achieved both. And the changed ceremony just made the moment picture perfect as she had the medal around her neck, not just flowers or a mascot.