Milano Cortina 2026: Japan’s Olympic Committee Tallies 62,000 Online Abusive Posts Targeting Athletes, Staff since Jan. 18

By Yoshinaga Azekawa / Yomiuri Shimbun Sportswriter

15:22 JST, February 15, 2026

MILAN — The Japanese delegation at the Milano Cortina Olympics has confirmed the existence of about 62,000 online posts with abusive content directed at athletes and other Games staff since Jan. 18.

Of them, 1,055 posts became subject to removal requests, with 198 posts subsequently deleted.

It has been confirmed that a Japanese athlete, who withdrew from the latest Games due to an injury shortly before the event, has been targeted by abusive remarks on social media.

“Directing hurtful words at athletes harms their dignity and drains their power,” Hidehito Ito, who leads the delegation, said at a press conference in Milan on Friday. “We urge people to stop doing that.”

The Japanese Olympic Committee (JOC) has designated in Italy personnel dedicated to protecting athletes and Games staff from online abuse. The JOC in both Italy and Japan monitors social media and online portal sites around the clock, using artificial intelligence to identify abusive posts and request their removal.

Posts with abusive content targeting athletes have surfaced during past Olympics and Paralympics. The International Olympic Committee also introduced a system using AI to detect abusive comments directed at athletes on social media, starting with the 2024 Paris Olympics.