Sand there were still medals for them Cultural Olympicsas for sports ones, the exhibition THE OLYMPIC GAMES™. A 3000 year long history he would probably take the gold one. Thus began Domenico De Maio, Education & Culture Director at Fondazione Milano Cortina 2026, during the inauguration speech of this exhibition which is open to all from today (and until 22 March 2026) at the Luigi Rovati Foundation in Milan.
On the day the Olympic torch was lit in Athensthe exhibition actually received a medal, the one awarded to the exhibition by President Mattarella.
The result of three years of work and coordination between the Foundation and the Olympic Museum and the Musée cantonal d’archéologie et d’histoire of Lausanne, with the collaboration of Etruscan Museum of Tarquinia, THE OLYMPIC GAMES™. A 3000 year long history it really is a journey through time following the common thread of the Olympic disciplines, from the ancient Etruscans to Milan Cortina 2026.
Thus, in magnificently curated display cases, Magic Johnson running shoes and Pierre de Coubertin gloves they dialogue with Roman ceramics and Etruscan frescoes that portray the same disciplines as they were practiced 3000 years ago.
THE OLYMPIC GAMES™. A 3000 year long history, until March 22nd at the Luigi Rovati Foundation in Milan. Photo: Daniele Portanome
The itinerary of the exhibition
The route opens in the atrium with two icons of Italian sport: the ski suit signed by Alberto Tomba for Nagano 1998 and the costume Scintille di Passione, worn at the inaugural ceremony in Turin 2006.
In the Blue Room, Greek and Etruscan strigils and ointment jars are similar to the kits distributed to 20th century athletesfrom Helsinki 1952 to Innsbruck 1964, confirming the persistence of gestures and rituals linked to athletic training. The representations of young athletes on vases, lamps and coins illustrate the construction of the public image of the champion, anticipating contemporary media dynamics.
A specific room is dedicated to the Olympic torch – from Berlin 1936 to Milan Cortina 2026 – symbol introduced in 1936 and today a central element of the Games. Its history refers to the Greek lampadophores, while official posters and national uniforms document the construction of the visual identity of each edition.
In the underground level, the section dedicated to the victory delves into the cultural meaning of the triumph: from the olive crowns consecrated to Zeus and the Panathenaic amphorae to the modern medals introduced in 1896, conceived as true works of art. The comparison highlights the continuity of a gesture that crosses the eras and gives victory a shared symbolic dimension.
Some finds in the underground room of the exhibition. Photo: Daniele Portanome
The itinerary ends in the Art Pavilion with a large photographic timeline that retraces the key moments of the Olympic history, from 776 BC to Milan Cortina 2026.
The tomb of the Olympics
For the first time in Italy, it is possible to admire the Tomb of the Olympics (530–520 BC) outside the National Archaeological Museum of Tarquinia, jurisdiction of the Archaeological Park of Cerveteri and Tarquinia (PACT). Discovered in 1958, on the eve of the 1960 Rome Olympicsthe tomb takes its name from the sporting scenes that decorate its walls. Thanks to the virtual reality project developed by Skylab Studios, it is also possible to explore it in a digital version with interactive contents.
Tomb of the Olympics (530–520 BC) traveled from Tarquinia to Milan. Photo: Daniele Portanome
Fruit of international collaboration
As he explained Giovanna Forlanelli, president of the Luigi Rovati Foundation: «Building alliances, creating relationships, intertwining knowledge and perspectives: these are the principles that guide the Luigi Rovati Foundation. The collaboration with the Olympic Museum and the Musée cantonal d’archéologie et d’histoire was born from this spirit and translates into a project of great cultural value. The exhibition traces the history of the Olympic Games and highlights the profound connection between sport, art and civilisationcontributing to the Foundation’s mission of making Milan a meeting place between cultures and disciplines, where the past meets the present.”
Thus medals, certificates, torches and tools belonging to key figures in the history of the Games arrived from the Olympic Museum in Lausanne. Among these, Pierre de Coubertin’s boxing gloves and Usain Bolt’s shirt (Beijing 2008), exhibited for the first time in Milan.
From Usain Bolt’s jersey to Michael Johnson’s running shoes, from Pierre de Coubertin’s gloves to Mijaín López Núñez’s shoes, up to Jan Železný’s autographed javelin, each piece of memorabilia testifies to the extraordinary durability of sporting values. Many of these objects, donated by great champions, leave the Olympic Museum for the first time. Photo Daniele Portanome
And from the Musée cantonal d’archéologie et d’histoire (Lausanne), the Vatican Museums, the National Etruscan Museum of Villa Giulia, other important Italian institutions and the collection of the Luigi Rovati Foundation, Greek, Etruscan and Roman finds.
THE OLYMPIC GAMES™. A 3000 year long history, an exhibition for everyone
A guide accessible of the exhibition for children and adults with intellectual disabilitieswritten in simplified language according to the Easy to Read regulations of the European Union, is available at the ticket office and can be downloaded from the Foundation’s website.
The video guide in LIScreated in collaboration with the National Deaf Organization, is accessible via the Foundation’s app, which can be downloaded at the museum.
Within the project Being good togetherin collaboration with the Cooperativa La Meridiana, is available at the ticket office on lGuide booklet of the exhibition dedicated to people with neurodegenerative diseases and their companions.