(From L) Silver medallist Norway's Martin Loewstroem Nyenget, gold medallist Norway's Johannes Hoesflot Klaebo and bronze medallist Norway's Emil Iversen celebrate during a podium ceremony for the men's cross country 50km mass start final event of the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games on Saturday. — AFP MILAN, Feb 11 (Reuters): A suspected act of sabotage damaged a small section of a railway route to the Olympic mountain venues of Bormio and Livigno in the early hours of Wednesday, Italian police said, following similar attacks near Bologna over the weekend.
The incident did not cause any disruption to services as technicians worked through the night to ensure safe operating conditions before the busy morning period, a spokesperson at the state-owned railway Ferrovie dello Stato said.
She said no one had claimed responsibility so far.
On Saturday, the first full day of the Milano Cortina Olympic Games, rail infrastructure was damaged near Bologna, causing delays of up to 2-1/2 hours on high-speed, Intercity and regional services.
An anarchist group claimed responsibility for that attack. The fire overnight near Abbadia Lariana, on the eastern shore of Lake Como, burnt seven cables in a trackside switching unit on the Lecco-Tirano line.
Police said the remains of a bottle of flammable liquid were found at the site. An investigation has been opened and early assessments point to arson as the likely cause, they said. Meanwhile, Paolo Petrecca has resigned as head of the sports division of Italian state broadcaster RAI, the company said on Thursday, two weeks after his error-ridden commentary at the Winter Olympics opening ceremony triggered a revolt among its journalists.
Petrecca, who is close to Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's Brothers of Italy party, faced widespread criticism for his performance and had already been barred by RAI from commentating at the closing gala on February 22.
At the opening ceremony, Petrecca muddled up the stadium hosting the event, confused an Italian actress for U.S. singer Mariah Carey and misidentified International Olympic Committee president Kirsty Coventry as the daughter of Italy's head of state.
He also failed to recognise two well-known members of Italy's women's volleyball team taking part in the torch relay. He made comments about some of the national delegations that were widely criticised, including saying that Spanish athletes were "always very hot" and that many Chinese athletes "naturally...have phones in their hands".
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