Faced with the most spread-out Olympics in history, Australia's athletes will kick off the 2026 Milano-Cortina Games opening ceremony across four separate venues.
But the nation will still be led by two flagbearers, says Australia's Winter Olympic team chef de mission Alisa Camplin-Warner.
The February 6 opening ceremony will take place in Milan's San Siro Stadium and in the mountain venues of Livigno, Cortina and Predazzo.
Former aerial skier Camplin-Warner, Australia's first female Winter Olympics gold medallist in 2002, says the refashioned parade of nations will enable athletes to participate regardless of their location in Italy.
Next year's Games will take place across 15 venues covering more than 22,000 square kilometres, from the country's most iconic Alpine regions to urban Milan.
Should the opening ceremony be held only at San Siro Stadium, athletes based in Livigno would have faced a near-four-hour drive across 240km to Milan.
"It really does give more athletes a chance to participate, if that's something they feel that will enable them to celebrate the moment and enhance their opportunity to perform," Camplin-Warner told AAP.
"They have the choice to do it without having really long commutes.
"There will be four ceremonies happening in harmony, looking and feeling the same, interacting and moving between them. People will be marching in every location.
"There will still be two flag bearers, a male and a female, from each nation.
"That's pretty cool and the right thing to do - there's a long heritage in the respect and honour of being granted as a flag bearer, and it makes sense that that should continue."
Athletes will also have six Olympic villages across Milan, Livigno, Bormio, Predazzo, Anterselva and Cortina.
But they will have a chance to all assemble in one location for the February 22 closing ceremony, to be held at Verona Arena.
"Yeah, there are challenges, but that's where you get the chance to compete and shine on and off the field. I think we're highly prepared," Camplin-Warner said.
"Our athletes are the ones on the field competing, but if we can have just any edge within our environment that is done better for them than their international competitors, then that's something that's a massive tip for us."
Camplin-Warner has also worked closely with "summer sister chef" Anna Meares in her preparations.
Meares, a four-time Olympian and two-time Olympic gold medallist in track cycling, was the team chef de mission for the Paris Games and will remain in her role for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
"Anna and I share the same philosophy and essence around people working together," Camplin-Warner said.
"We, as athletes, achieved the very best we could, but we know that we couldn't have achieved that without all the team behind us.
"Both of us, in some ways, were leaders within our team environment and helping to coordinate and pull that team together.
"Let's be honest, like, some of the countries around the world, they've got more money, more athletes, more training opportunities.
"So every edge and smart that we can find, we'd be crazy not to be sharing."
