Winter Olympics 2026 Guide to BBC and TNT Presenters and Coverage

Snow Surprise – None of BBC’s Main Presenters Have Been on a Ski Holiday!

The 2026 Winter Olympics in Milano Cortina will probably be an easier Winter Games for UK viewers to watch with coverage shared between the BBC and TNT Sports and a better time-zone than the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics. If you want to watch highlights on the Beeb or comprehensive coverage on TNT this guide covers the presenters, schedules and where to watch.

The Games are running from 6th to 22nd February 2026 with events in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Milan and surrounding Alpine ski resorts in Italy. I think the GMT +1hr time zone is terrific for UK viewers as all events fall during daytime and evening hours and the team at SNO Ski will be binge watching.

BBC’s Main Presenters Have No Winter Sports Experience!

Can you believe the three main studio presenters anchoring BBC’s Winter Olympics coverage (Hazel Irvine, Clare Balding, and Jeanette Kwakye) have no personal experience of winter sports whatsoever? None of them seem to have ever been skiing or snowboarding even on a ski holiday despite huge Olympic broadcasting experience.

Hazel Irvine presented Ski Sunday for ten years (1996-2007) and has covered every Winter Olympics since Lillehammer 1994 but there’s no record of her ever hitting the slopes.

Clare Balding has presented lots of Winter Olympics (Salt Lake City 2002, Turin 2006, Vancouver 2010, Sochi 2014, Pyeongchang 2018, and Beijing 2022) but her sporting background is equestrian. Despite extensive winter sports broadcasting experience there’s no indication Clare has ever been skiing.

Jeanette Kwakye is a former 100m sprinter who represented Great Britain at the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics. In an interview she did mention being ‘desperate to try’ skiing and snowboarding after her athletic career, which suggests she hasn’t yet.The BBC has assembled an impressive team of former Winter Olympic athletes as analysts and experts, but the choosing generalist presenters to front the coverage (rather than former athletes) contrasts TNT Sports.

BBC Winter Olympics 2026 Presenter Line-up

The BBC is providing over 450 hours of live coverage from Milano Cortina 2026 – a big increase from the 300 hours at Beijing 2022. It’s all “free-to-air” across BBC1 BBC2 iPlayer and the BBC Sport website so you don’t need a subscription.

Daily BBC Broadcast Schedule

Time	Channel	Presenter
9am – 1pm	BBC One	Hazel Irvine
1pm – 2pm	BBC Two	Jeanette Kwakye
2pm – 5:15pm	BBC One	Jeanette Kwakye
5:15pm – 10pm	BBC Two	Clare Balding

The Three Main BBC Presenters

Hazel Irvine MBE is one of the most experienced presenters in BBC sport having joined in 1990. Irvine presented Ski Sunday from 1996 to 2007 and has covered every Winter Olympics since 1994 and was awarded an MBE in the 2024 for services to sport and charity.

Clare Balding OBE CBE is one of Britain’s most recognisable sports broadcasters presenting major events for the BBC since 1998. An amateur jockey (1988-1993) and Champion Lady Rider, she has presented multiple Winter Olympics for the Beeb. Clare has won multiple BAFTA awards for her broadcasting work and an OBE and CBE.

Jeanette Kwakye MBE is a British sprinter who represented GB at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. After retiring from athletics she trained as a journalist building a broadcast career across athletics, football, boxing, basketball and swimming. Jeanette was the first Black female presenter to host boxing on UK TV and was appointed MBE in 2021 for services to sport and sports broadcasting before presenting BBC Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics coverage.

BBC Gets Their Expert Analysis From Winter Sports Athletes

The main presenters are generalist broadcasters but the BBC uses former Winter Olympic athletes for its expert analysis.

Lizzy Yarnold CBE providing expert skeleton analysis is Britain’s greatest Winter Olympian with two skeleton gold medals (Sochi 2014 and Pyeongchang 2018) and was the first Briton to successfully defend a Winter Olympic title.

Montell Douglas (aka “Fire” on TV’s Gladiators) is a dual-sport athlete who competed in the 100m at the 2008 Summer Olympics then transitioned to bobsled to compete at the 2022 Winter Olympics.

Vicky Wright was curling Gold medallist at Beijing 2022 as part of Eve Muirhead’s victorious British team.

Robin Cousins MBE is of Britain’s most celebrated figure skaters after winning gold at the 1980 Lake Placid Olympics and has brought unparallelled expertise to BBC coverage in the decades since.

Graham Bell MBE is a five-time British Winter Olympian in alpine skiing (1984-1998) and a former Ski Sunday presenter.

TNT Sports Winter Olympics 2026 Coverage

TNT Sports (formerly BT Sport) has the most hours of Winter Olympics coverage ever seen in the UK with over 850 hours of live action. It’s a subscription service with access to every event and multiple simultaneous streams so it might be preferred by fans who want to see everything.

Who Are The TNT Sports Presenting Team?

TNT Sports has taken a different approach to the BBC by using many former Winter Olympic athletes in the lead presenting roles.

Amy Williams MBE was Skeleton gold medallist at Vancouver 2010 and the first British individual gold medallist at a Winter Olympics for 30 years, bringing genuine expertise to the presenting role.

Aimee Fuller is a two-time Winter Olympian in snowboard slopestyle (Sochi 2014, Pyeongchang 2018) and previously a BBC presenter at Beijing 2022.

Eve Muirhead OBE was a curling gold medallist at Beijing 2022 and one of Britain’s most decorated curlers. She is also serving as Team GB’s “Chef de Mission” at Milano Cortina 2026 leading the entire British delegation while also contributing to the curling coverage.

Ed Drake is an alpine skier who represented GB and now leads TNT Sports skiing coverage.

Charlie Guest is a former British alpine ski racer providing expert commentary on slalom and other skiing events.

Lamin Deen is a former Team GB bobsled pilot (that’s the driver) who competed at Sochi 2014 and Pyeongchang 2018. Fun fact, our very own SNOman rode with the Brit Olympic driver and breakman in La Plagne back in the dim and distant past.

Which Should You Watch BBC vs TNT Sports?

Feature	BBC	TNT Sports
Total Hours	450+ hours	850+ hours
Cost	Free (TV Licence)	Subscription required
Main Presenters	Generalist broadcasters	Mix (many former athletes)
Expert Analysts	Former athletes in expert roles	Former athletes in lead roles
Coverage	Major events and Team GB focus	Comprehensive – every event
Streaming	BBC iPlayer	Discovery+

I think for Team GB’s medal hopes the BBC has good free coverage with experienced presenters and dedicated winter sports fans who want to see every heat, run and every obscure event might shell out for TNT’s full coverage.

What Are The GB Medal Hopes at Milano Cortina 2026?

While this guide focuses on presenters, it’s worth noting the British athletes these teams will be following. Our main medal hopes include:

Curling was considered Team GB’s strongest sport with both men’s and women’s teams competitive for medals. Sadly it wasn’t to be in the mixed doubles.

Skeleton is a traditional British strength so look out for Matt Weston and Marcus Mayfield on the men’s side.

Bobsled in Brad Hall’s four-man team does have medal potential.

Freestyle Skiing/Snowboard sees young British talent coming through in halfpipe and slopestyle events.

Key Dates for Your Diary

6th February 2026: Opening Ceremony in Milan

7th February 2026: First medals awarded

22nd February 2026: Closing Ceremony

I think the BBC’s approach of pairing experienced generalist presenters with former athletes’ analysts provides polished and accessible coverage but TNT Sports’ roster of former Olympians is more comprehensive if you want to binge on snowsports for the fortnight.

I do think it’s less than ideal the BBC’s main presenters have no personal winter sports experience but we have to wonder if any of them might finally take a ski lesson after Cortina… ladies please do call us at SNO Ski Holidays to arrange a beginner ski holiday once the games are over!