So much of the world is glued to their televisions — or, more realistically, their phones — watching some of the world's best athletes compete on the snow and ice.
And, if these Winter Olympics viewers are anything like me, they are wanderlusting from their living rooms and daydreaming of snowy wonderlands from their desks at work.
But I don't think hoteliers have to have properties in Italy — or another snow globe-worthy region — to glean something from the Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026. However, my colleague Terence Baker has already reported on the unique hospitality market of the host region, as has STR's hotel data experts.
Instead, I'd like to approach this topic a bit more metaphorically.
As a lifelong Texan, I've never had a desire to be around snow for an extended amount of time — much less hurl my body over it with one to two planks of wood attached. But I can't help but be inspired by the effortless ease of figure skater Ilia Malinin's backflips or downhill skier Breezy Johnson's incredible story of resilience and redemption.
And that's because sports are played by people. I know it's stating the obvious, but all people — whether they are competing on an international stage or leading an on-property hotel team can always benefit from inspiration. Perhaps now more than ever.
These athletes needed training — an extensive amount of it. U.S. ice dancers Madison Chock and Evan Bates didn't practice their twizzles the week they flew to Milan, and a hotel staff would probably prefer to avoid training a new concierge during a high-demand, sold-out weekend.
A particularly hard lesson to remember is athletes also need rest and restoration. They have their limits, as does anyone when it comes to their workload and what all they can handle — physically, mentally and emotionally. Alpine skier Lindsey Vonn's devastating crash over the weekend was a painful reminder that these incredible athletes, despite their god-like mastery of their sports, are only human.
The last parallel I'd like to draw between hotels and the Olympics — I mean, I could go on and on, but I won't because I've got to go back to streaming the events — is the importance of teamwork. The U.S. didn't secure its gold medal in ice skating because of one standout performance, and Korey Dropkin and Cory Thiesse didn't sweep their competition to get to the gold-medal game without consistent communication.
It's a cliche for a reason. Teamwork really can make your dream — Olympic or otherwise — work. And if that's not a core principle for your hotel operations, then you won't deliver a gold medal performance for your guests.
Maybe I'm just way too attached to the Olympics these days, but I think these are a few ways hoteliers can get inspired by the world's best winter athletes these two weeks. Feel free to let me know if you feel inspired by these winter sports over on LinkedIn if you'd like to connect.
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