Olympics 2026: Pope calls for 'healthy competition' to unite people at Winter Games

(OSV News) -- In a message to the Archdiocese of Milan, Pope Leo XIV expressed his hope that the 2026 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games will be an occasion of solidarity and bridge-building between peoples and cultures.

The papal message was read during a Jan. 29 Mass marking the arrival of the "Cross of Athletes" and the official launch of the archdiocese's Olympic pastoral initiative, "For Each Other."

In his message, which was signed on his behalf by Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state, the pope said he hoped the Olympic Games would bring about "sentiments of friendship and fraternity, strengthening awareness of the value of sport at the service of the integral development of the human person."

"The Holy Father assures his prayers so that these days of healthy competition may contribute to building bridges between cultures and peoples, promoting hospitality, solidarity, and peace," the message stated.

The "For Each Other" initiative, which will coincide with the Feb. 6-22 Winter Olympics and the March 6-15 Paralympics, will feature activities, performances and events hosted in parishes across Milan.

At the heart of the activities will be the 11th-century Basilica di San Babila, dedicated to St. Babylas of Antioch, where the opening Mass was celebrated and which will be known as the "Church of Athletes" throughout the Olympic and Paralympic Games.

During the Mass, the "Cross of Athletes" was entrusted to the archdiocese by Athletica Vaticana, the Holy See's sports association. Blessed by Pope Francis at the 2013 World Youth Day in Rio de Janeiro, the cross has been placed in chapels in the Olympic host cities of London in 2012 and Paris in 2024.

According to the Archdiocese of Milan, the cross, which will remain at the altar in the Basilica di San Babila until the end of the Paralympics, "symbolizes the close bond between sporting activities and the values of solidarity, inclusion, and personal growth."

In his homily, Archbishop Mario Delpini of Milan said the Olympic and Paralympic Games could serve as a form of rigorous spiritual education, describing the athletic competitions as "school of asceticism" and a "school of life" where one learns how to handle both victory and defeat.

For Olympians and Paralympians, the games will be a chance to learn "what strength is needed to accept defeat without becoming depressed, to live victory without becoming arrogant, to live through the disordered reactions of others, the unexpected anger, the irritating stubbornness, the paralyzing discouragement."

Reflecting on the presence of the "Cross of Athletes," which features a void silhouette of Christ's crucified body, Archbishop Delpini said the cross offered "more of a glimpse than a figure" of the body of Christ that "encourages our questions, our gaze, and our attention."

"If you want to know what love is, if you want to know if there is hope," the archbishop said, "look to Jesus, adore the crucified and risen body, listen to his words and follow him, for he is the way, the truth, and the life."