Which Other Olympic Mascots Could Italian Stoats Tina And Milo Slaughter In Cold Blood?

Apologies to all otters, ferrets, badgers, ferret-badgers, weasels, fishers, polecats, wolverines, martens, and grisons, but the mustelid of the moment is the stoat. The mascots of the 2026 Winter Olympics are a pair of sibling stoats named Milo (short for Milano) and Tina (short for Cortina). Tina is white, just like stoats in the winter, and Milo is brown, just like stoats in the summer. Milo, the Paralympic mascot, was born without a leg and learned to use his tail as a substitute. Per official Olympics lore, Milo and Tina parted ways as they grew up—Tina moved to the city and Milo stayed in the mountains—but the two reunite each year in the winter in their childhood den. Also per the lore, Milo and Tina are "the first openly Gen Z Mascots," implying the existence of closeted Gen Z mascots—may they one day feel secure enough in their generational identity to come out on the world stage.

Those unfamiliar with mustelids may be curious to know what the deal is with stoats, which are also called ermines. The first and most important thing to know is that they are extremely, undeniably cute.