Sara Errani & Jasmine Paolini Share Favorite Winter Sports

Sara Errani and Jasmine Paolini are looking forward to the return of the Olympic Winter Games to Italy. Milano Cortina 2026 will be the first time in two decades that the Games, taking place from 6-22 February, return to the nation since Torino 2006. The reigning Olympic tennis women’s doubles gold medallists, currently competing at the 2026 Australian Open, are more accustomed to playing on clay and grass than snow and ice. But that does not mean that they are not in the winter season spirit. Paolini, who was a torchbearer in the Olympic Torch Relay ahead of Milano Cortina 2026, told Olympics.com: “I never went to the snow to do sport, but everybody is saying that [Alpine] skiing is amazing, so when I'm going to retire, I'm gonna go to the mountains, try to ski one week and drink some hot chocolate.” Posed the same question, Errani said to Olympics.com, “I would love to learn to go on a snowboard because I tried when I was young, but I couldn't learn, impossible." Exclusive: One year on, Sara Errani and Jasmine Paolini reminisce about Paris 2024 tennis gold and Parisian bike rides “But I was skiing when I was a little girl. Now, no, because I'm really scared to be injured. So many years has passed, so maybe one day I will go again on the mountains.” The duo won Italy’s first OIympic tennis gold medal with their doubles victory at Paris 2024, and are now the second-highest-ranked women’s pair in the world. Currently ranked eighth in the WTA singles rankings, Paolini admitted that she has never skied before. “I'm curious to do that, but I think it's not good to try now because you can break your knee,” she added. “So it's better to stay safe right now. I watch some skiing sometimes on TV, especially when I was younger, but to me it's something crazy to jump and go that fast with the skis. I think they are crazy to do that.” Errani and Paolini will continue to chase glory on the tennis courts for now, though perhaps one day we will see them take to the snow.