Dương Trường Lập competes at the recently Asian Winter Games in China. — Photo baomoi.com

HÀ NỘI — Thomas Bach, President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), has extended an invitation to the Việt Nam Olympic Committee to take part in the 2026 Milano Cortina Olympic Winter Games.

The Games are scheduled to take place in Milan, Italy, from February 6 to 22.

Dương Trường Lập was the sole Vietnamese athlete to compete at the Asian Winter Games, held in China earlier this month.

This will mark only the second time Việt Nam has sent athletes to the continental winter sports tournament. The first was in Sapporo, Japan, in 2017, when the country was represented by six male skiers.

The Milan Cortina Winter Olympics will feature 16 Olympic sports and 116 events, bringing together nearly 3,000 athletes from around the globe. Competitors will participate in a variety of winter sports, including skiing and ice hockey.

Việt Nam did not have any representatives at the 2022 Winter Olympics held in Beijing, China. Notably, the upcoming SEA Games 33 in Thailand later this year will include winter sports, and Việt Nam is considering sending local athletes to compete in skiing and ice hockey. - VNS