He’s back.
In an Olympic tradition quite unlike any other, Pita Taufatofua of Tonga will once again carry his country’s flag during the opening ceremony for the Milano Cortina Winter Games. And you can bet he won’t be wearing a shirt again either.
This will be the fourth time Taufatofua has had the honor of being Tonga’s flag-bearer at the Olympics. A cross-country skiier in the winter and competitor in taekwondo and canoeing in the summer, he first gained international fame at the 2016 Summer Games in Rio de Janeiro for his unique native attire during the parade of nations.
Two years later at the 2018 Winter Games in Pyeongchang, he braved the below-freezing temperatures during the opening ceremony wearing nothing but sandals and a taʻovala (a Tongan mat wrapped around the waist). He also carried his nation’s flag at the 2020 Tokyo Summer Games
The flag-bearers for each country were officially announced on Tuesday, Feb. 3, with Taufatofua as one of five highlighted by the Olympic Games’ official Instagram account.
The opening ceremony for the 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Games will take place on Friday, Feb. 6, starting at 2 p.m. ET. It will be broadcast live on NBC and Peacock, with a prime-time replay at 8 p.m. ET/PT.
