Turin 2006The Mascot

Names

Neve and Gliz

In Italian, “neve” means snow and “gliz” is a nod to the word “ghiaccio”, which means ice.

Description

Neve is a snowball; Gliz is an ice cube. Together, they represent the fundamental elements required for successful Winter Games and personify Winter sports. Neve, with fluid and rounded contours, is linked to harmony and elegance of movement. She is dressed in red. The angular and smooth shapes of Gliz recall the power and strength of athletes. He wears a blue outfit.

Creator

Pedro Albuquerque

Did You Know?

The mascots’ creation was the subject of an international contest, launched three years before the start of the Games. The contest was open to design, advertising and graphic design agencies as well as independent graphic designers. Five finalists were selected out of the 237 proposals received; the winner, a Portuguese designer, was selected by the President’s Office of the Organising Committee.

Javier Mariscal, the creator of the Barcelona mascot in 1992, was among the jury members.

A cartoon of 52, one-minute episodes was broadcast on Italian TV channels RAI 2 and RAI 3 from October 2005 to February 2006. Each episode covered a subject linked to Olympism: values, territory, sport, etc.