Ski Sunday, the BBC’s long-running winter sports programme, will end after nearly 50 years on air.
First broadcast in 1978, the programme showcased the best of winter sports action. Its most recent presenting team included Ed Leigh and Chemmy Alcott.
“Changing audience behaviours and the tough financial decisions needed to meet savings requirements mean BBC Sport must continually review how it delivers value for licence fee payers and serves audiences across all platforms. This decision forms part of that process,” said a BBC Sport statement.
Philip Bernie, head of BBC Sport events, said Ski Sunday “has been a truly iconic programme”.
He added: “Generations of viewers have enjoyed its coverage of the best in winter sports. “We are enormously proud of the role it has played in bringing these moments to audiences across the UK, and extremely grateful to the brilliant people who have delivered them, not least the current outstanding team.”These decisions are never easy, but as audience viewing habits evolve and we work to deliver value for licence fee payers, we have to make tough choices. “We remain committed to bringing audiences the very best of winter sport, above all at the Winter Olympics, across BBC Sport’s platforms.”
The Winter Olympics kicked off in model final night time (6 February) because the opening ceremony befell on the San Siro Stadium in Milan, Italy.
With a little bit of boo’ing for 2 nations through the parades, there was additionally performances from Mariah Carey and Andrea Bocelli, in addition to big papier-mache bobble heads and a tribute to the late Giorgio Armani.
However as a part of all this spectacle with a theme of ‘armonia’ (that means concord), some viewers took to social media to name out a supposed ‘satanic’ second.
The 2026 Milano-Cortina Olympic Video games had its opening ceremony unfold throughout 4 totally different venues in northern Italy and to mirror this, there was an unprecedented double cauldron lighting.
In Milan, Italian snowboarding legends Alberto Tomba and Deborah Compagnoni collectively lit the cauldron on the Arc of Peace in Milan, whereas alpine hero Sofia Goggia lit a second in Cortina.
The cauldron in Milan used for the 2026 Winter Olympics opening ceremony, is inflicting backlash for being ‘satanic’. (Lars Baron/Getty Photos)
And it was the design of those cauldrons that obtained backlash. Manufactured from aeronautical aluminium, the enormous orb-like buildings with a geometrical sample have been accused on-line of ‘that includes Satanic symbolism’.
“Seems like one thing straight out of hell,” one person wrote on X following the cauldron lighting as one other slammed: “This isn’t a Satanic Ceremony it is the opening Ceremony of the Winter Olympics, 2026.”
A 3rd even claimed: “A clearly seen the other way up pentagram on the Opening Ceremony of the Olympics. Revelation of the strategy.
“As in the event you wanted extra PROOF that this world is run by Devil and his minions. This doesn’t seem like the ‘Winter Olympics’… It appears to be like like a scene from hell. The EVIL is palpable.”
Others even in contrast it to the ‘Starvation Video games’ as one wrote: “I can’t consider individuals nonetheless watch this rubbish.”
Nonetheless, many slammed this narrative as they wrote: “You’ll flip actually something into somethings it’s not simply to suit your narrative. That is determined and embarrassing.”
There’s a second cauldron in Cortina meant to symbolise concord. (Stefano Rellandini-Pool/Getty Photos)
Milano Cortina 2026 described the cauldrons as a ‘highly effective image of concord between the 2 host cities and the territories of the widespread Video games’.
The buildings are the ‘results of a challenge by Marco Balich in collaboration with Lida Castelli and Paolo Fantin’.
With the diameter increasing from 3.1 metres when closed to 4.1 metres when open, it built-in 244 pivot factors and 1,440 parts, mounted on pins and bearings.
“The design recollects the genius of Leonardo da Vinci and his well-known Knots, geometric interlacing symbolizing the concord between nature and human ingenuity,” the outline provides. “A tribute to Leonardo and his historic reference to Milano, a metropolis that stands as an emblem of creativity and innovation.”
