Olympics Meet Ramadan: Muslim Communities Navigate Faith During Italian Games

As the Olympic and Paralympic Games unfold in Italy through the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, Muslim communities face various challenges in observing their religion. While Milan presents quite a few mosques and interfaith gatherings, mountain city Cortina offers restricted prayer areas for visiting Muslims.

The Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games going down in Italy this yr are occurring throughout Ramadan, the sacred Muslim month of fasting from dawn to sundown, non secular contemplation, and neighborhood gatherings. This timing presents distinctive challenges and alternatives for Muslim guests and residents within the predominantly Catholic nation.

The two Olympic venues current contrasting experiences for Muslim worshipers. Milan, recognized for its numerous and worldwide character, options quite a few Islamic facilities and mosques all through the metropolitan space the place trustworthy can congregate for prayers. Several of those areas are extending invites to individuals of all backgrounds to affix iftar meals, the night gatherings when Muslims finish their each day quick.

However, within the mountainous area surrounding Cortina d’Ampezzo, discovering acceptable worship areas proves tougher. Despite these obstacles, native Muslim residents have regularly established their very own spiritual communities in recent times.

The Al-Wahid mosque in Milan has prolonged an open invitation all through Ramadan, welcoming guests to take part in fast-breaking ceremonies and night worship companies. Located close to the favored Navigli space, this mosque has held official recognition from metropolis authorities as a reliable home of worship since 2000.

Each Friday, which serves as the first congregational prayer day in Islamic custom, brings elevated attendance to native mosques. Throughout latest Ramadan seasons, Al-Wahid has hosted representatives from municipal authorities, neighborhood organizations, Catholic Church management, and varied religion communities throughout these Friday gatherings. Such interfaith iftar celebrations have gained recognition worldwide, from Muslim-majority nations like Indonesia and Pakistan to international locations the place Muslims signify smaller populations, together with Australia and the United States.

While these open neighborhood gatherings weren’t designed particularly for Olympic attendees, they proceed weekly till March 14, which falls in the future earlier than the Paralympic Games conclude.

“The Olympics are a symbolic moment,” Imam Yahya Pallavicini, vice chairman of a nationwide Islamic spiritual affiliation recognized by its acronym COREIS, instructed The Associated Press. “Sport, culture and art can help reduce prejudice and fear toward a particular culture or religious identity.”

During one latest night on February 20, a number of dozen Muslim worshipers gathered intently collectively below ornamental hanging lights. They awaited the standard name to prayer earlier than ending their quick with dates served on elegant silver trays. Following this ritual, members sat collectively on the ground sharing lentil dishes, rice, meat, and water earlier than concluding with communal prayers.

Research performed in 2025 by ISMU, a Milan-based migration research group, signifies practically 400,000 Muslims reside in Lombardy, the Italian area containing the immigrant inhabitants and together with Milan, the nation’s second-largest metropolis. The research identifies Moroccan and Egyptian communities as the biggest Muslim teams within the space.

According to Pallavicini, the broader Muslim neighborhood additionally encompasses people from Bangladesh, Pakistan, Bosnia, and quite a few different international locations.

In Cortina, the second Olympic host metropolis located roughly 1,220 meters (4,000 toes) above sea degree, eight Muslim people interviewed by the AP described vital difficulties finding prayer amenities.

This unique mountain resort, nicknamed the Queen of the Dolomites, homes barely greater than 5,000 residents. Roughly half the inhabitants belongs to Italy’s Ladin ethnic minority, whose ancestors established the mountain settlement of Anpezo one thousand years in the past.

Rabah Boubegtiten, who got here to work as a driver for Qatari safety through the Olympics, described his journey to Brunico — the place he found the closest mosque — as taking greater than an hour on difficult roads. I’ve situated the ability via social media after unsuccessful Google searches.

“There are many nationalities here, many Muslims from various countries: Algerians, Tunisians, other Africans, and many Qataris, because we are working with them during the Winter Olympic Games. They look everywhere to find a place to pray, but it’s almost impossible,” Boubegtiten, 52, who lives in Paris and is initially from Algeria, mentioned. “For us, it’s really difficult. Sometimes, even if we want to eat, we simply can’t.”

While interfaith prayer rooms exist at athlete residential amenities all through the Games venues, these areas stay off-limits to basic public entry.

Throughout different components of the Dolomites area, residents have created their very own worship areas. Local Muslims report ample spiritual amenities round Brunico, which serves roughly 17,000 individuals, together with halal meat markets and specialty shops catering to the Muslim inhabitants.

Approximately 120 worshipers gathered for Friday prayers in Brunico, seated intently collectively on the ground in a curtain-enclosed room whereas listening to sermons delivered in Italian. Following companies, attendees had been requested to contribute donations towards protecting rental prices and utility bills for the area.

“In Italy, Ramadan is not an impossible thing. It is possible to practice Ramadan, it’s possible to pray,” mentioned Kreem Wardi, whose father is Muslim from Morocco and mom is from Italy and Catholic. “It is not easy to find a mosque everywhere in Italy. But in this area, we are fine for now, inshallah.”

Wardi, a 20-year-old scholar, noticed that in Brunico it stays uncommon to ask non-Muslims to iftar dinners or share Ramadan customs with the broader neighborhood.

“They maybe don’t want to talk about Islam. It’s not that they hate us Muslims, but it’s just that they are maybe not interested, so we don’t want to force it upon them,” he defined.

Although the overwhelming majority of Italy’s 59 million residents obtained Catholic baptism, roughly three-quarters at the moment determine with that religion, whereas considerably fewer take part in common church attendance. Muslims complete 1.7 million individuals, representing greater than 30% of the overseas resident inhabitants for the primary time, in keeping with ISMU’s July analysis findings.

Immigration patterns over the previous decade have fueled right-wing, anti-immigrant political actions throughout components of Europe. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, chief of the far-right Brothers of Italy get together, promised stricter migration insurance policies upon taking workplace in 2022, aiming to discourage potential refugees from paying smugglers for harmful Mediterranean Sea crossings.

While a lot of Italy’s present Muslim residents are immigrants, Pallavicini famous in Milan that rising numbers embrace second-generation Italian Muslims, spiritual converts, and folks born inside Italy’s borders.

When the night name to prayer lastly resonated all through the Al-Wahid mosque close to 7 pm, women and men prostrated themselves in synchronized worship, their foreheads touching the ground.

Amina Croce, 28, participated in these prayers. Born to Italian Catholic mother and father who embraced Islam and raised her inside the Muslim religion, she described the mosque as having “been a very significant part of who I am.”

Beyond spiritual observe, Croce views her religion as integral to Europe’s historic narrative.

“We believe this diversity is part of Italy’s broader cultural heritage,” mentioned Croce, who directs the youth division of COREIS. “It may still be underappreciated, but we hope it will be recognized more in the future.”