BEIJING, March 19 (Xinhua) -- The Milan-Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games drew 13,478 validated media accreditations, the International Olympic Committee said Thursday.

The total included written and photographic press, media rights holders and host broadcaster personnel working across venue clusters stretching from Cortina d'Ampezzo to Milan. Media operations were supported by the Main Press Centre, the International Broadcast Centre and venue-based facilities.

According to IOC data, 2,537 written and photographic journalists validated their accreditation, representing 803 media organizations and 62 national or regional Olympic committees. Of those, 618 were women and 1,919 were men, meaning women made up 24 percent of the press category, up slightly from 23 percent at the Beijing 2022 Winter Games.

Female representation varied across categories, from 11 percent among local journalists to 43 percent among NOC press attaches. Women also accounted for 40 percent of Main Press Centre support staff.

The IOC said 6,368 validated accreditations were issued to media rights holders.

"With 13,478 validated accreditations, international and local media once again played a vital role in telling the stories of the athletes, the host regions and the communities engaged in the Milan-Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games, the most spread-out Olympic Games in history," read an IOC statement.

The Milan-Cortina Games, held from February 6 to 22, featured 2,880 athletes from 93 delegations competing in 116 events across eight sports and 16 disciplines. Benin, Guinea-Bissau and the United Arab Emirates made their Winter Olympic debuts. ■