Racing
League
Rugby
Cricket
Golf
Olympics
Football
Motorsport
Combat Sports
Basketball
Other Sports
Sport Nation
Live sport on SN this weekendSpeedskater Lollobrigida wins Italy's first gold medal
Howard Fendrich • February 8th, 2026 12:00 am
Francesca Lollobrigida proudly displays Italy's first gold medal of the Winter Olympics | Photo: AP
Speedskater Francesca Lollobrigida has won host Italy's first gold medal of the Milan Cortina Games, taking the women's 3000 metres in an Olympic record time.
With fans rising to their feet and roaring for her as she competed on her 35th birthday, Lollobrigida finished in 3 minutes, 54.28 seconds, more than two seconds ahead of runner-up Ragne Wiklund of Norway.
Canada's Valerie Maltais was third.
Lollobrigida is from Frascati, a hill town just outside Rome well-known for its white wine, and her great aunt was the late Gina Lollobrigida, a star actress of the 1950s and '60s.
Francesca Lollobrigida celebrates her win before home fans | Photo: AP
This was her fourth Olympics and her first gold - also the first by an Italian woman in speedskating.
She collected two medals at Beijing four years ago: a silver in the 3,000 and a bronze in the mass start before giving birth to her son, now aged two.
Her time was more than 2 1/2 seconds faster than the Olympic mark set by Irene Schouten when she claimed the 3,000 gold at the 2022 Beijing Games.
