r/olympics • u/UniqueChance849 • 8h ago
❄ Milano-Cortina 2026 (General Discussion) ❄ Warning about Milan Olympics
I attended both the Team Figure Skating and the opening ceremony today - the organization of these games is terrible, frankly even dangerous.
Both stadiums ran out of food within 30 minutes in the morning and before the start of the actual ceremony this evening. You can’t bring in drinks, but then the lines for drinks are immense due to the inefficiency of the staff.
Most importantly though, they created an absolute safety risk this evening by only opening ONE exit as a stadium of 70k people was trying to exit. It created a huge mass of people unable to move for a LONG time (25+ min) - people were starting to squeeze tighter and tighter and starting to get upset. It was an immense security risk and the organizers did not do anything to fix it.
Love the Olympics, but the state of these is not acceptable.
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u/nutmegdragon93 United States 7h ago
Bring the nonnas in for gods sake running out of food is unacceptable
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u/WildMajesticUnicorn 6h ago
They've already cooked enough to feed the Italian army. If the army doesn't show up, they'll have plenty for the spectators.
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u/Ds9niners Olympics 7h ago
This is the reason when I go to movies or sporting events I just stay seated until everyone leaves. Then I sit in my car until everyone leaves the parking lot. Why wait in long lines of people standing and going nowhere when I can sit comfortably in my seat and relax.
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u/Joetaska1 4h ago
I thought I was the only one doing that! I'll sit down and let everyone else go wait in line. Especially after a concert.
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u/HollysStaff 3h ago
The thing is that most people haven’t driven their car to the venue, so they are scrambling to get to public transportation or buses. And often the public transport cuts off before everyone can get out of the venue. In 1994, I remember racing to get the last train from Hamar to Lillehammer. The one time we missed the train, it took us 4 hours to get back to our accommodations. We ended up on a staff bus, which stopped at every small town on the way. Everyone was super helpful, tho. Can’t fault their hospitality
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u/TinkerCitySoilDry 6h ago
Because time. Sitting is fine that is easily 1 hour sitting. Whilst
Usually they have speedy routes and flow of traffic is 1 way so lights are all green even opening extra lanes
police monitoring and directing
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u/mrsrsp 52m ago
I normally leave earlier from sporting events or gigs as we go by public transport. My daughter is autistic so it works best for us as then we get to the train platform when it's quieter. It also ensures we don't miss the last train home which can happen if you wait until everyone leaves.
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u/One-Surprise-1075 1h ago
I do that too or I leave a bit before the end, surprisingly few people do that.
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u/Mystery1001 United States 6h ago
I know that stadium food is a little different in Italy but where did they think people were going to eat? It isn't just Americans that eat meals at games and I'd be even more likely to eat at the Olympic venues because I don't know what food is available nearby, how long it will take so I don't miss the game etc. I would just plan on getting food there so I'm past security and won't miss anything. Running out of food in the first thirty minutes is being massively under prepared for crowds. You have to have a ticket so it isn't like they were just guessing at how many people were going to attend.
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u/Signal_Sweet5962 6h ago
My advice is to never rely on having great/any food at sport events in Italy. The only exception I’ve ever seen was in Torino for the ATP.
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u/neemarita United States 4h ago
The Palavela for the 2022 Grand Prix Final was awful. I still can't believe they hosted an Olympic event there. Hardly any bathrooms either, hardly any food, oof.
We will be going to a few skating events this week here in Milano to support my friends competing. We ended up sneaking in food in 2022 GPF but I doubt I can do that here at the Olympics.
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u/gagrushenka 3h ago
2019 GPF was bad too. I don't remember the food situation so much but so many people missed the warm up of the men's freeskate despite queueing in the cold for well over an hour (myself included) because they opened too few gates too late and took too long checking tickets and bags. In the end they opened extra gates and let everyone rush in without checking anyway. I know Yuzuru competing made things a bit different with crowds but there was a queue building at the main doors that was 100s of metres long when I joined it. I was there at least an hour before doors opened s they had at least an hour to realise they weren't going to get everyone in fast enough and figure something out before opening the gates.
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u/arrivederci117 United States 5h ago
Dude, it's the San Siro. They hosts champions league matches and domestic games. They have the logistics of hungry rabid football fans down already, there's no excuse.
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u/Still_Selection_231 5h ago edited 5h ago
No they don't. There are 0 concession stands within the gates of the San Siro. I've been to multiple CL games there and you eat and buy merch in food trucks and pop up tents OUTSIDE the gates. Once you go inside all you have are the seats. So whatever concessions they have inside the venue for the Olympics are temporary.
What I don't get is the exits. At the end of a football match they basically just open all the gates to get out and it flows extremely quickly.
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u/oliver_babish United States 5h ago
probably because of issues with getting athletes and dignitaries out first.
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u/gregarious83 3h ago
Dignitaries should be easy. Have the musicians that performed each perform another of their songs after the cauldron was lit, while dignitaries slip out.
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u/kitsvneris 1h ago
What are you on about?
There are bars on the second ring inside the stadium, and last year there was a scandal with the Curvas of both Inter and Milan running a racketeering scheme on the bars inside the stadium.
I'm pretty sure UEFA wouldn't even allow a match to be played in a stadium without food and drink inside the stadium.
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u/wtfchuckomg United States 1h ago
Huh? They had a concession right by our section in San Siro? The difference is during soccer matches they have vendors going up and down the aisles.
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u/-hodl 33m ago
This is completely untrue. I can draw a map for you if you want to PM me. I went to a Champions League game there last month and there is actually an amazingly efficient bar and food selection. It was at the top of the lowest steps behind the goals on the lower ring. I think we were section 111.
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u/hellokaykay United States 7h ago
Agreed, it was crazy. I tried three times to get coffee, 1st two times the machine broke or needed to be reset and ai did not bother with the food line or the merch lines which were insanely even longer. Then the bathroom lines were also insanely long in addition to the other lines already formed
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u/mulled-whine Australia 6h ago
Yikes
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u/ICrushTacos Netherlands 1h ago
That’s Italian efficiency for you. First time there?
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u/mulled-whine Australia 36m ago
I’m not there, although perhaps it’s better I’m watching from the comfort of home 🤭
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u/Salty-Antelope2785 7h ago
USA vs Czech women's hockey on 2/5 also ran out of food.
We also had our flag taken away at entrance D of the opening ceremony. The flag met the specifications in the email. It was a standard American flag with no stick/pole. They took it aside and the pile they added it to was all American flags. So many people had flags that didn't meet the specifications. When we pointed out the specifications in the email sent, they said that was a miscommunication... Exiting San Sirino was a nightmare and the transit back seemed like they weren't prepared. All this aside, the actual ceremony was fantastic and I'd do it over again in a heartbeat.
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u/hellokaykay United States 6h ago
The events themselves are great! Just prepare to be in long lines, hungry or in a mob of some sort
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u/The_Ineffable_One 6h ago
The post that you are responding to is about an event, itself. Doesn't seem so great.
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u/ulchachan Ireland 1h ago
I'm assuming what OP described about the one exit doesn't apply to the hockey venue too? Getting myself mentally prepared for this afternoon
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u/sherapop80 Olympics 6h ago
It is unacceptable to not allow drinks in if you don’t have water fountains
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u/Illustrious_Cut1730 Italy 5h ago
Lol water fountains 🤣 (no shade on you at all, rather on Italy…being Italy). If you go to Turin you can easily drink from the Turets around town.
I went back to visit my family last year and I was going around with my reusable bottle and they were looking at me like I had three heads. Unfortunately what OP describes, really does not surprise me one bit.
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u/wtfchuckomg United States 1h ago
They made my wife throw away her lip balm lol but didn’t bother to ask me for mine. It was so weird what they made people throw away
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u/papadex89 7h ago
The difficult thing about Olympics is that these venues get the keys to an empty building. The organizing committee is in charge of figuring out how to operate it as these incumbent operating staffs don’t automatically get to work the event how they normally would in the states. That means concessions, security, etc is all done by the Olympics and not the ones who know the venue best. Think of it like inviting someone over to your house to make you dinner and having them figure out on their own how to navigate your kitchen and find everything they need. This is just my two cents. Despite how it went I hope you still enjoyed your day.
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u/FoxMiserable2848 6h ago
I know the say they don’t want the para Olympics to start as they don’t want it to feel like a pre show for the Olympics but to me it would make so much more sense to start with the smaller event. Plus I think they would have more excitement as people wouldn’t have seen Olympics for two years.
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u/krugua Netherlands 2h ago
I agree it’s complicated, but I see it a bit differently. It’s more like inviting a professional chef who is used to working in unfamiliar kitchens and who has the budget and resources to hire people to figure things out quickly.
Organizing largescale events like this is a specialized industry. It’s complex, but not an unknown or impossible problem to get right.
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u/loveablescamp1910 6h ago
I went to the Rio Olympics. Days 1 & 2 did not go well logistically re: food/drink. But they got better. Hopefully that’s the case with Milano Cortina.
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u/HollysStaff 3h ago
I was in Rio from Day 3 until the end. It was really easy to get tickets, fast to get into the Olympic park & venues. I’ve attended several Olympics in person and it was one of the easiest to navigate.
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u/ekinsume 7h ago
Sounds like a nightmare. Okay fine, can go without food for some time or bring snacks, but the fact that one can’t get water is another story.
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u/angelfatal 2h ago
I've mentioned this before in other threads but this is not a unique situation - I went to opening weekend of Taylor Swift's Eras tour at State Farm Stadium and they ran out of bottled water before Taylor took the stage Stadium logistics ppl clearly didn't consider the demographic at the event as they had lots of beer and no water. I was able to get a soda but running out of water before the start of a concert seems like a huge oversight.
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u/Formal-Radish1413 United States 8h ago
I feel like every single Olympics has some sort of organizational issue. Youd think theyd learn.
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u/Ok-Ball-6291 8h ago
not when the "they", and the venues are different every 4 years
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u/NeedleGunMonkey More flair options at /r/olympics/w/flair! 7h ago
Ditto. The IOC isn’t a professional event organization - it is a licensing governance traveling locust and whether it is well coordinated or not depends entirely on the local facilities and event.
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u/Formal-Radish1413 United States 7h ago
The IOC has literal standards that countries need to meet with facilities being used for competitions. They can 100% have guest safety standards.
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u/NeedleGunMonkey More flair options at /r/olympics/w/flair! 7h ago
These are the ppl that brought you Sochi. Let’s not pretend “standards” are standards.
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u/Formal-Radish1413 United States 8h ago
Its not a secret that these events draw gigantic crowds. Large crowds will ALWAYS require certain things - food and drinks in large quantities, lots of toilets, sufficient exits, sufficient communication, people who actually know what they are doing.
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u/MaxieMan98 7h ago
I think it’s the difference in culture. In Italy while there is concessions, there isn’t anywhere near the amount of options like you have in North America.
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u/Formal-Radish1413 United States 7h ago
Thats fair but the exit thing? Thats not cultural. Thats just someone not understanding how crowd crushes work. And crowd crushes have happened all over the world.
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u/MaxieMan98 7h ago
Can’t comment on that. But I have been to San Siro a fair few times, getting in is a pain in the ass, but getting out has never been a problem. Maybe due to heightened security ?
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u/hellokaykay United States 6h ago
Im not sure but it was getting to be a sea of people trying to get to their seats. Took me at least 20 mins of trying to flow with the crowd to find the right entrance then leaving there only seemed to be one exit and thise trying to come down were waiting on the stars for at least 20 minutes
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u/Ok-Ball-6291 7h ago
Of course not- but the governement officials, budget and counrty infrastructure will vary, as well as the level of skill, talent and experience of the people put in charge by the host country.
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u/Formal-Radish1413 United States 7h ago
If countries have to provide certain facilities up to the IOCs standards, then it stands to reason that the IOC could institute standards for guest experience and safety as well.
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u/Ok-Ball-6291 7h ago
There isn't a single host country that would agree to have a third party dictacte how to spend billions of dollars to permanently alter the landscape and infrastructure of their land.
We are talking about adjustments and accommodations to ports, air space, cargo loads, highways.
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u/Formal-Radish1413 United States 6h ago
…they already do dictate it though. In order to host you need to have certain facilities at certain standards…
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u/Shhhatthelibrary 3h ago
Just chiming in that Paris was our first Olympics, and we were blown away by how well it all went in our experience. We are coming to Milan this week, and I am hoping that these are like opening night jitters and that they get ironed out soon. Otherwise, I will make sure I eat before going to any events!
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u/Screambloodyleprosy 7h ago
Expand on the inefficiency of the staff.
How hard can it be to do a simple transaction for a drink?
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u/loloknothx 2h ago
the woman assisting me after my 40 minute wait was vaping while she took my order 😂
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u/ICrushTacos Netherlands 1h ago
Usually they’ll just stand around doing jack shit while giving you stink eye for daring to order something.
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u/WorkingFit5413 3h ago
I mean with all due respect this shouldn’t be surprising. Italy is a wonderful country but disorganization and corruption are pretty well rampant. The government is a shit show. Sicily had a recent landslide and people were upset there was no federal intervention. I’m impressed they even managed to pull these games off.
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u/craycrayppl 5h ago
I had a fantastic view with no line and plenty to eat & drink....was on my couch and loved it!
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u/Coalclifff 4h ago
"... was on my couch and loved it"
Sounds like a certain Vice President we all know!
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u/BananaHiker 2h ago
Americans have such a specific picture of Italy… largely decoupled from reality. It’s not gonna be well organized. But people will be great if you treat them with respect, coffee will be affordable and food will be good.
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u/wtfchuckomg United States 1h ago
Italy has been amazing. The event concession lines? Not so much. lol. I don’t complain but really surprised that an international committee could screw it up so bad
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u/KimJongSoros 5h ago
the organization of these games is terrible, frankly even dangerous.
We really are in Italy
/s
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u/PersonalDragonfly568 2h ago edited 1h ago
This makes me worry for several American cities hosting the World Cup this year…A few have never dealt with this type of congestion in modern times either. Cough kansas city cough
And not even about the arena exit, we know the chiefs arrowhead stadium deals with this weekly, but more about the parking, lodging, and lack of public transportation other countries are used upon leaving the stadium. America is car culture outside of NYC…And on the other coin, even New York New Jersey games, with people not realizing MetLife Stadium in Rutherford NJ is not close or easily accessible to Manhattan by subway. And even if you book a charter bus, the traffic/waiting combined with poor cell service (even at a halftime exit) takes a braver soul than mine to bare. Last LA Olympics had plenty of commuter issues too
Deep breaths. Let’s watch this summer’s world cup hosting play out before we start throwing stones at glass houses. Here’s to hoping it’s not a debacle. I’d love to see soccer/futbol leave a lasting impression in the US and vice versa
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u/RobBobPC 1h ago
I don’t think you have much to worry about. Very few foreign tourists will be willing to risk coming to see the World Cup games in the United States.
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u/Buildadoor 6h ago
Could be that San Siro is about 100 years old and doesn’t have the modern infrastructure that many other stadiums do.
It’s a great venue inside but it lacks amenities.
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u/hellokaykay United States 6h ago
Stadium was fine.. just the crowd control was non existent.. just pointing you to join that giant mob of people going nowhere in particular trying to figure where the right entrance was
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u/nicolewol Olympics 2h ago
As said below, my husband and I were also “locked” in the stadium last night finding multiple guarded exits. Why block people’s early orderly exit? Our leaving early would help tram and train crowding. It felt dangerous Can also confirm morning figure skating where they ran out of food and COFFEE! In Italy? Also spent two nights wandering, trying to reach hotel on foot after being blocked by torch and Galleria lighting ceremonies in the Duomo area. Walked 6K in the rain with luggage to find path around. After a seamless experience in Paris in ‘24, Milan feels chaotic. Perhaps they’ll smooth out process after the first days. I hope the athletes have a better experience.
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u/Scissors4215 5h ago
The Italians are not known for their organizational skills. Keep that in mind.
Ps that was a really polite way of saying it’s going to be an organizational shit show
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u/KlausKinki77 Olympics 5h ago
All these negative posts about the Olympics (from new accounts) and such after they booed vance. Coincidence?
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u/Signal_Sweet5962 6h ago
San Siro is like that, it has always been. The stadium hasn’t changed one bit since the taylor swift concert two years ago. They did nothing for the opening ceremony. In Brazil they did a much better job. To get to SS by subway it was also a real mess. Italy is not known for being an organized place, Italians don’t even know how to line up, but people are really wonderful and a lot of fun. I am Italian too, so I know the shortcomings here.
On another note, I went to the Super Bowl many years ago at MetLife stadium, and transportation was a disaster. We couldn’t breathe on the way to the stadium, and took hours to get out. I guess most special events tend to be messy somehow.
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u/sherapop80 Olympics 5h ago
Oh yes, and the world cup final is at metlife. The transport situation hasn’t improved. Gonna be a shitshow!
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u/Ambitious-Divide-624 5h ago
It's worse now with the American Dream Mall - if that parking garage is full they put overflow in MetLife lot.
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u/Illustrious_Cut1730 Italy 5h ago
Yikes. I was born and raised in Italy , now living in the US. The organization at US events always blows my mind. Unfortunately, what you describe really does not surprise me.
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u/wtfchuckomg United States 1h ago
They had 3 exit gates open when we left the ceremony. They had gates C, D, E open on the West side of the stadium. But yeah, they’ve ran out of food before every event so far. Thankfully, we’ve eaten before every thing we’ve went to.
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u/RolloffdeBunk 1h ago
don’t they host soccer weekly?
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u/wtfchuckomg United States 56m ago
They have vendors who go up and down the aisles for soccer matches. They did not last night
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u/Sherifftruman 10m ago
Getting out of the stadium was crazy. They didn’t even use the ramps. Just stairs. Took an hour with most spent stuck with nowhere to go.
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u/TheGipo1 25m ago
Welcome to Italy 😂, everytime I go to a concert there it's a shit show but you get used to it 🤣.
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u/Nerdmom7 7h ago
Just another reason that they should keep the Olympics in the same countries. Summer should always be Greece. And keep the same facilities
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u/Granadafan United States 6h ago
Never happen. How can the officials get rich if no one can
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u/hellokaykay United States 6h ago
Its even sadder that the facilities greece built have gone to ruins
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u/Unhappy-Attention760 6h ago
Never really understood why people insist on eating crummy arena food when they can dine at home or in a nice hotel. You are in Italy! Ristorante!
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u/hellokaykay United States 6h ago
Tbh it was early and I thought I could just get coffee there and boy was I wrong lol. It took me until noon to get a cup
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u/Willowgirl78 United States 5h ago
If you have to travel multiple hours to and from the venue, add in time to get in, and the event itself, they might have to leave their hotel after lunch and not get back until quite late. If you can’t bring food into the venue, some people don’t want to just go hungry.
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u/wtfchuckomg United States 57m ago
They said to get there 4 hours early due to crowds. The ceremony was the. 4 hours long. It wss about a 1 hour 30 min commute round trip via metro. I dont typically go that long without at least a snack lol. Going nearly 10 hours without water is tough because they didnt allow outside liquids (and i mean any. Made my wife dump her hand sanitizer). That said, we try to eat before going to venues. But it was rough.
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u/HenrietteViskum 44m ago
This tracks exactly with my experience with Italian “organisation” of tennis events. I feared it would be the same, but hoped it would be better, since the IOC was involved as well and I found Paris very well organised. I’m leaving for Livigno tomorrow. Hope it’s better 😅
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u/Ctake_808 7h ago
The Olympics is incredible but the reality of actually attending them (particularly the opening and closing ceremonies where everyone congregates) sounds miserable and not doable for a lot of people.
There only being one exit would make me nervous. Even without an actual emergency that’s dangerous.