AILSA CHANG, HOST:
Well, the 2026 Winter Olympics are now officially underway. The opening ceremony just wrapped up in Milan. NPR's Pien Huang was there and joins us now from outside San Siro Stadium. Hi, Pien.
PIEN HUANG, BYLINE: Hey, Ailsa.
CHANG: Hey. OK, I have to ask, what was it like to be inside that stadium? I am so jealous right now.
HUANG: OK, Ailsa, I have to admit it was so awesome.
CHANG: (Laughter).
HUANG: There was this moment when the Olympic rings dropped from the sky, and fireworks started spouting out of it, and I screamed a little bit. But...
CHANG: (Laughter).
HUANG: It's not just me, Ailsa. The crowd was super hyped. The athletes were really excited to be there. There were huge cheers for Mariah Carey, same for the Italian anthem and even bigger cheers for athletes from some countries like Ukraine and, of course, Italy. And I'll also say there were seemingly huge cheers for Team USA, as well, which has, you know, brought the most athletes of any country - more than Canada and also Italy, the host country.
CHANG: Of course there are huge cheers for Team USA. OK.
HUANG: (Laughter).
CHANG: So remind us, Pien, the opening ceremony - remind us what it's supposed to represent each Olympics.
HUANG: Yeah. So first and foremost, it's supposed to kick off the games with a showcase for the athletes. I spoke with Olympic historian Bill Mallon, who's here at the Games with Team USA.
BILL MALLON: The first Winter Olympics were held in 1924 in Chamonix, France. And those opening ceremonies actually consisted of the athletes walking from the center of town over to the main stadium. And then somebody said, OK, Games are open, and they started with that.
HUANG: OK. So it's gotten a lot more elaborate since then, of course. You know, it's become really a showcase for a country's history, its cultures, its values. And this one was designed by Marco Balich. So he's designed ceremonies for over a dozen Olympics, but this one was special 'cause it was in his hometown of Milan. And there were nods to opera, to neoclassical sculpture. There was a tribute to the late designer Giorgio Armani. There were models who walked down a catwalk in the colors of the Italian flag. The whole thing was very chic. It was very elegant, and it was centered around the theme of bringing different people, different things together in harmony.
CHANG: OK. But I have to ask, how was Mariah?
HUANG: OK. OK. She was amazing but brief. She made this four-minute appearance. She was center stage in sequins and fur. She started singing in Italian, and she hit a high note to a lot of cheers.
CHANG: (Laughter).
HUANG: But there were also other great musical performances. There was this amazing violin performance on a 1716 Stradivarius by this Italian violin prodigy, Giovanni Andrea Zanon. And, of course, you know, the whole thing - towards the end, there was a strong, triumphant performance by Andrea Bocelli, the opera star, right before the lighting of the cauldron. Hearing it live gave me chills.
CHANG: I love him. OK. But really, the most important question - which team had the best outfits?
HUANG: OK, Ailsa. There were so many to choose from. I mean, the Germans had these really cool ponchos. Some countries, like Saudi Arabia, were wearing traditional clothing. Team USA, of course, looked great in their tailored Ralph Lauren Heritage wool. But my personal favorite, I will say, was Team Canada. They had these big maple leaf parkas. I got to see their fits up close on a tour of the Olympic village earlier this week. They looked really great. And, I mean, overall, it was just really great to see all the athletes. Everyone was having a great time. They were doing coordinated dances, super fun. That's what the Olympics should be about.
CHANG: That is NPR's Pien Huang. Thank you so much, Pien.
HUANG: You're welcome. Thanks for having me.
CHANG: And for more Olympics coverage, check out Up First Winter Games. That's a new video podcast from NPR. New episodes drop throughout the Games every afternoon at youtube.com/NPR. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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