NBC 5 Chicago & Digital Properties to Deliver Over 400+ Combined Hours of Milan Cortina Winter Olympics Coverage
NBC 5 Anchor ALEX MARAGOS to Deliver Daily, Live, On-Site Reports, including Exclusive Interviews with Local Athletes, Numerous Feature Stories and More
Extensive, Locally-Focused Olympics Coverage to be Delivered on Every Edition of ‘NBC 5 Chicago News’ & ‘Noticiero Telemundo Chicago’
Comprehensive, 24/7 Digital Olympics Coverage to be Showcased on NBCChicago.com, the NBC Chicago App & Social Media Outlets
Additional Local Coverage Highlights include ‘Olympic Zone’ hosted by ALLISON ROSATI & LOU CANELLIS, ‘Hometown Hopefuls’ Local Athlete Profiles, Exclusive Live Streaming Editions of ‘NBC 5 Chicago News’ and Much More
LIVE OPENING CEREMONY COVERAGE AIRS THIS FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 6 at 1:00 PM CT on NBC 5 Chicago
Chicago, IL (February 4, 2026) – NBC 5 Chicago and NBCU Local Chicago digital properties will be THE local destination for comprehensive, round-the-clock coverage of the highly-anticipated Milan Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games beginning this Friday, February 6.
Featuring more than 400 hours of event coverage across multiple platforms, which includes NBC 5 Chicago, the NBC 5 Chicago News live streaming channel, NBCChicago.com, the NBC Chicago app, and all NBC Chicago social media outlets — plus comprehensive, locally focused reporting on every edition of NBC 5 Chicago News and Noticiero Telemundo Chicago, primetime lead‑in coverage via Olympics Zone, and Chicago’s ONLY dedicated on‑site local TV reporter, NBCUniversal Local Chicago will truly have it all for local viewers from the Opening Ceremony on Friday, February 6, through the close of the XXV Winter Olympiad on Sunday, February 22.
Please note the following details surrounding NBCU Local Chicago’s comprehensive, multiplatform coverage of the Milan Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games:
ALEX MARAGOS
Beginning today and throughout the entirety of Winter Games, NBC 5 Chicago News anchor/reporter Alex Maragos will be the only local television journalist in Milan Cortina providing viewers with the latest Olympic updates and breaking news LIVE on the station’s 6:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m. CT newscasts. In addition, Maragos, now covering his third Olympic Games, will deliver numerous on-site interviews and feature stories on local athletes, interviews with local fans attending the Games, “sights and sounds” from Italy and more on midday and afternoon editions of NBC 5 Chicago News. Viewers can also follow Maragos for additional Winter Games content on social media via Instagram (@alexmaragosnbc), Facebook (AlexMaragosNBC5) and X (@AlexMaragosNBC).
NBC 5 CHICAGO NEWS / NOTICIERO TELEMUNDO CHICAGO
On every edition of NBC 5 News & Noticiero Telemundo Chicago, viewers will be provided with up-to-the-minute Olympic highlights, local athlete interviews & profiles, sights & sounds of celebratory activities surrounding the Games and much more. In addition to covering the top local news stories of the day, a complete wrap-up of the day’s events in Milan Cortina, along with a preview of the upcoming day, will be featured on the 10pm editions of both newscasts daily.
OLYMPIC ZONE
Leading into its primetime Olympic coverage Monday-Saturday at 6:30 p.m. CT (featuring co-hosts Allison Rosati & Lou Canellis), NBC 5 Chicago will carry Olympic Zone, a half-hour Olympics highlights and features program. Olympic Zone’s first airing will take place on Saturday, February 7.
HOMETOWN HOPEFULS: ROAD TO THE OLYMPICS
As the “local athlete destination” showcasing the Chicago area’s finest Olympic athletes, NBC 5’s Alex Maragos profiled eight local Winter Olympic standouts for special segments entitled Hometown Hopefuls: Road to the Olympics. Throughout the week leading up to Friday’s Opening Ceremony, the NBC 5 Chicago News live streaming channel will deliver Hometown Hopefuls segments nightly to viewers from 10:00 p.m. to 12 midnight CT. NOTE: Viewers can also view all Hometown Hopefuls segments on NBC Chicago’s YouTube channel: Hometown Hopefuls: Road to the Olympics. The featured local athletes include:
- Kendall Coyne Schofield (Palos Heights – Women’s Hockey)
- Bradie Tennell (Carpentersville – Figure Skating)
- Ethan Cepuran (Glen Ellyn – Speed Skating)
- Abbey Murphy (Evergreen Park – Women’s Hockey)
- Emery Lehman (Oak Park – Speed Skating)
- Sarah Warren (Willowbrook – Speed Skating)
- Jason Brown (Highland Park – Figure Skating)
- Kevin Bickner (Wauconda – Ski Jumping)
NBC 5 CHICAGO NEWS LIVE STREAMING CHANNEL TO DELIVER “EXCLUSIVE” LIVE TELECASTS THROUGHOUT THE OLYMPICS
Due to its airing of live Olympic events coverage, the NBC 5 Chicago Newslive streaming channel will be the exclusive destination for NBC 5 News editions weekdays at 11:00 AM and weekends at 5:00 PM.
NBCU LOCAL CHICAGO DIGITAL PROPERTIES TO DELIVER MASSIVE OLYMPICS COVERAGE
Beginning today (Wed, Feb. 4), NBCU Local Chicago’s digital properties (websites/apps/social media) are set to provide viewers with its most comprehensive coverage of any single Winter Olympic Games to date. In addition to its extensive live coverage on the NBC 5 Chicago News live streaming channel, viewers can look forward to the following exclusive content:
Available for viewing now:
- Detailed schedule on when local athletes will be competing in Paris
- “Local Athletes to Watch” guide
- Detailed explainers on every sport and how they compete, including new ones like Breaking (breakdancing), Kayaking and Women’s Boxing
- “Hometown Hopefuls”: insider access to the biggest local athletes
- Viewer guides on how to watch every major event at the Olympic Games
- Explainer on Rules
- “How to Watch” guides, athlete profiles and much more
Beginning Friday, February 6:
- Real-time coverage of all major events and athletes, with special emphasis on local athletes
- Extensive coverage of trending moments from the Games
- Video highlights of each day’s most talked about and impactful moments
- Explainers answering all the big questions associated with the Olympic Games
- Up-to-the-minute Medal counts
NBCU Local Chicago’s massive digital content can be found via the following viewing options:
- NBC Chicago News 24/7 live streaming channel – NBC Chicago News
(NOTE: The NBC Chicago News 24/7 live streaming channel is also available for viewing on Peacock, Roku, Samsung TV Plus, Amazon Fire TV, Xumo Play, Google Play, Freevee, TCLtv+ and Local Now)
- NBCChicago.com – NBCChicago.com
- NBC Chicago app – NBC Chicago app
- NBC Chicago YouTube channel – NBC Chicago – YouTube
From a social media standpoint, NBC Chicago will deliver 24/7 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics content via TikTok (@nbcchicago), Facebook (@nbcchicago) and Instagram (@nbcchicago).
The below information details NBC 5 Chicago’s Milan Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games competitive event coverage specifics:
OPENING CEREMONY
NBC 5 Chicago will present LIVE coverage of the Opening Ceremony on Friday, February 6, beginning at 1:00 PM CT, which will be preceded by live figure skating coverage, including the pairs short program, beginning at 11:00 AM. Primetime re-air Opening Ceremony coverage on NBC 5 gets underway at 7:00 PM. The centerpiece for this year’s Opening Ceremony will be Milan’s iconic San Siro Stadium, which was built nearly 100 years ago and is home to world renowned football clubs AC Milan and Inter Milan. Event organizers have said Milan will celebrate the opening of the Olympic Winter Games by involving multiple competition venues in a way no one has seen before.
NBC 5 CHICAGO — DAYTIME COVERAGE (weekdays 11am-4pm CT; weekend daytime coverage begins at 6am CT)
With Milan seven hours ahead of Chicago’s central time zone (identical to Paris 2024), the daytime takeover will feature that day’s most popular events LIVE on NBC 5 Chicago in the morning and afternoon. Milan Cortina 2026 will have more programming hours on NBC 5 Chicago (over 230) than any previous Winter Olympics, and more total linear hours (over 700), including cable telecasts (over 475). NBC 5 Chicago will provide Olympic fans with at least five hours of daytime coverage of the Winter Games’ most exciting events, including LIVE finals coverage of skiing, snowboarding, hockey, speed skating, figure skating, and more. Among the highlights include:
- Three-time Olympic medalist and 2010 Vancouver downhill champion Lindsey Vonn is currently expected to compete in three events at this year’s Winter Games, starting with the downhill on Super Bowl Sunday. Despite recently tearing her ACL during a practice run, Vonn is in the midst of one of the most remarkable comebacks in sports. She has reached the podium in five straight World Cup races, while racing on a surgically reconstructed right knee.
- Three-time Olympic medalist Mikaela Shiffrin, the winningest World Cup alpine skier of all time, aims to win her second giant slalom gold medal in the final on Sunday, Feb. 15, live at 6:30 a.m. CT on NBC 5. Shiffrin has had a hot start to her season, with the eight-time world champion having won six of her last seven World Cup slalom races. Additionally, she is also expected to compete in the women’s team combined and slalom.
- Six-time speed skating world champion and world record-holder Jordan Stolz begins his quest for gold in the men’s 1000m on Wednesday, Feb. 11, at 11:30 a.m. CT on NBC 5. This is the first of four events in which Stolz is considered a strong medal contender.
- The stars of the U.S. Figure Skating team begin their Olympics in the team event, beginning Friday, Feb. 6, at 11 a.m. CT on NBC 5, leading into live coverage of the Opening Ceremony.
- NBC 5 will present live coverage of the men’s and women’s hockey semifinals beginning Monday, Feb. 16, with the women’s semifinals at 9:40 a.m. CT. On the men’s side, this will be NHL players’ first Olympic appearance since 2014, reigniting international hockey’s biggest stage with its brightest stars. On the women’s side, the fierce U.S.-Canada rivalry will once again take center stage, with the two nations having met in the gold medal game at each of the last four Winter Olympics dating back to 2010, with Canada winning three of those four thrilling matchups.
NBC 5 CHICAGO — PRIMETIME COVERAGE (daily 7-10pm CT)
Following the critical success of Primetime in Paris, NBCUniversal will present Winter Olympic primetime coverage with its signature show, Primetime in Milan. Similar to the massively-consumed Primetime in Paris, Primetime in Milan will deliver detailed storytelling and merge the worlds of sports and entertainment, bringing viewers closer to the Winter Olympics than ever before. For three hours every night, NBC 5 Chicago will show viewers the best competitions of the day and the can’t-miss moments, all infused with NBC Olympics’ flair for storytelling on the grandest stage, constantly working to advance the story. Key highlights include:
- Mike Tirico will host Primetime in Milan beginning Tuesday, February 10, following his turn calling Super Bowl LX for NBC on Sunday, February 8. Global megastar Snoop Dogg will also be a part of Primetime in Milan most nights, joining Tirico with a report after a day of attending Olympic competitions, visiting with Olympic athletes and their friends and families, and exploring the unique sights and sounds that only a winter in northern Italy has to offer.
- Stanley Tucci, the Emmy Award-winning and Academy Award-nominated actor and New York Times best-selling author, will join NBCUniversal’s primetime coverage. The Italian-American actor will be on-site in northern Italy, spotlighting the local cuisine, culture, and lifestyle.
- Primetime in Milan will also feature a main title sequence capturing the magic of Milan in the wintertime, showcasing star athletes and evolving to highlight the day’s narrative. It will typically begin with exciting moments from various competitions earlier that day.
- Olympic Late Night will be presented on NBC 5 beginning Feb. 7 through Feb. 21 (immediately following NBC 5 News at 10pm) and will feature many of the day’s most notable events on a nightly basis. Maria Taylor will host the program from Feb. 10-21, following her Super Bowl duties, with TODAY co-anchor Craig Melvin hosting from Feb. 7-9, with all shows live from Milan.
- NBC 5 Chicago will also deliver live coverage of the Milan Cortina Olympic Winter Games Closing Ceremony on Sunday, February 22 beginning at 1:30 p.m. CT from Verona Olympic Arena.
NOTES: For even more expanded coverage details on the Milan Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games, including competition schedule updates, viewers can also view NBCUniversal’s Official Olympic Games site here: 2026 Milan Cortina Olympic Winter Games | NBC Olympics. NBC’s Winter Olympics coverage is part of “Legendary February,” which includes Super Bowl LX on Sunday, February 8 and NBA All-Star Weekend (February 14-15).
ABOUT NBCU LOCAL CHICAGO
NBCUniversal Local Chicago, a part of NBCUniversal Local, is the home of NBC 5 (WMAQ-TV) and Telemundo Chicago (WSNS-TV). Together, the duopoly serves diverse English- and Spanish-speaking audiences in the third largest U.S. television market. The NBC and Telemundo-owned stations deliver the latest local news, consumer, and investigative reports across multiple platforms, including linear TV, streaming, and digital. Their coverage includes Chicago’s most accurate forecast, extensive local sports coverage, original documentaries and series, and lifestyle and entertainment programming through “Chicago Today.” All original content is available on-air, digitally via NBCChicago.com and TelemundoChicago.com ,and via the stations’ mobile apps. Viewers can also access the NBC 5 Chicago News 24/7 live streaming channel on Peacock, Roku, Samsung TV, Amazon Fire TV, and other supported platforms.
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MEDIA CONTACT
Jeff Nuich
jeff.nuich@nbcuni.com
