Brad Hall and Lilah Fear have been selected as Team GB’s flagbearers for the Opening Ceremony of the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games, taking place this Friday 6 February.
Hall, the most successful men’s bobsleigh pilot in British history, will carry the Union Flag in the athlete parade in Cortina at his third Olympic Winter Games. He follows in the footsteps of Stuart Parkinson, a fellow bobsleigh athlete who carried the flag for Team GB seventy years ago on the very same streets at the Opening Ceremony of the Cortina d’Ampezzo 1956 Olympic Winter Games.
With 30 World Cup medals to his name, Hall has established himself as a trailblazer and driving force for British bobsleigh and Team GB. He has been selected as the male flagbearer for Team GB by Chef de Mission Eve Muirhead after being nominated for the honour by his sport in recognition of his leadership, integrity, and support for his teammates.
In Milan, Lilah Fear will carry the flag for Team GB in the athletes parade at the San Siro stadium, becoming the first British ice dancer to do so since Christopher Dean at the Opening Ceremony of Sarajevo 1984.
Like Hall, Fear has been selected for the honour by Muirhead as an exemplary ambassador for the team. She and ice dance partner Lewis Gibson won Britain’s first global ice skating medal in over 30 years in 2025 when they claimed World Championship bronze, with both recognised by their sport for their leadership, professionalism, respect, and pride in representing the nation.
Hall and Fear follow on from Muirhead and alpine skier Dave Ryding, who carried the Union Flag at the Opening Ceremony of the Beijing 2022 Olympic Winter Games, and curler Bruce Mouat, who had the honour at the Closing Ceremony.
Ben Sherman will outfit the full Team GB delegation for both the Opening and Closing Ceremonies. The flagbearers will wear unique hand-knit scarves and winter hats created as part of a collaboration between Ben Sherman and five-time Olympic medallist Tom Daley, who carried the flag at the Paris 2024 Opening Ceremony.
Brad Hall said: “It’s a great honour and a privilege to be named flagbearer, especially seeing the calibre of athlete we’ve got across the whole of the team. They’re a very, very talented, very inspiring group of athletes, and to be selected to lead them out at the Opening Ceremony is a dream come true.
“When I was told on Monday, Eve approached me in the Team GB area of the village, and I initially thought something was wrong! When she told me the news, it was a real flip of emotions, from thinking something’s wrong to finding out the news and feeling the honour and privilege of it all. It really blindsided me.
“Hopefully I can lead by example at this Olympics and hopefully inspire some other athletes, particularly those who are here attending their first Olympics, to do their best, and perform well out here.”
Lilah Fear said: “When I heard the news, I started crying immediately, I was just flooded with so much emotion, and honour, and pride. Carrying the flag connects us to all the flagbearers and athletes at previous Olympic Games, and to everyone dreaming of being at an Olympic Games in the future, and to this beautiful sense of community.
“When I spoke to Eve [Muirhead], as someone who’s been a flagbearer before, she just expressed that you’re representing your whole team in that moment, and as someone who competes as part of a team with Lewis [Gibson] that was really amazing advice.
“Being nominated to carry the flag exceeds my wildest dreams. Of course, I’d dreamed of going to the Olympics, but I think back to the pride I felt as a young girl skating in London in my first Team GB jacket. I still feel so proud to be part of Team GB, and this moment is something so meaningful for me.”
Eve Muirhead said: “In the time I have known Brad and Lilah it has always been clear to me how much of a positive influence they each have within Team GB. Not only are they both exceptional athletes, but time and again I have watched them both embrace our One Team culture with open arms, supporting and uplifting those around them. They are truly deserving of the opportunity to lead their teammates into the Opening Ceremony and I hope they each feel an immense amount of pride as they soak it all in.”