Today, Monday, the German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB) The six athletes nominated for election were introduced. Flag bearer for Team Germany at the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics The nominees include NHL forward [name missing]. Leon draisaitl (Edmonton Oilers), who is responsible for the German men's ice hockey team will play in Milan. From now until February 3, 2026, German players can Fans to vote on who from Team Germany will be allowed to carry the German flag at the opening ceremony on February 6, 2026.
You can vote at www.teamdeutschland.de.
Leon draisaitl“Of course, it’s a great honor and fills me with a little pride to be among the three men nominated for flag bearer. I’m very grateful to the German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB) for the nomination and was delighted to receive the call from Otto Fricke (Note: Chairman of the Board of the German Olympic Sports Confederation) on Sunday with the news. I’m very excited about everything that awaits us in Milan and can’t wait to be on the ice with the team representing Germany.”
Christian Kunast, Sports Board of the DEB“It is already a great honor to be among the candidates for this special task. We are delighted for Leon Draisaitl, who, through his outstanding achievements in recent years, is an absolutely exceptional figure in our ice hockey sport. Therefore, we naturally hope that he will be able to take on this special role for Team Germany, and we are counting on the support of our ice hockey fans and sports enthusiasts in Germany, who will be able to vote for Leon.”
DOSB President Thomas Weikert is quoted in the DOSB press release as follows:“To be able to lead Team Germany as flag bearer at the Olympic Games is a tremendous honor bestowed upon very few people. We didn't take the selection of candidates lightly. With Team Germany boasting over 180 athletes, including 37 Olympic medalists and many prominent and accomplished athletes, the list could have been considerably longer. The election is now officially open, and I am certain that the Fans and Team D will once again select an outstanding duo who will worthily represent our country.”
The Pre-selection criteria The six nominees selected by the delegation leadership of Team Germany were:
Success.
Previous international, especially Olympic, successes
role model function
Popular athletes who embody fair and manipulation-free competitive sport not only through their achievements, but also through their personality and attitude, inspiring and motivating people to participate in sports themselves and strive for athletic success.
diversity of sports
Selection of athletes from various sports and disciplines
Priority for the Olympic Games competitions
Participation in the opening ceremony is voluntary and does not always fit into the athletes' training and competition schedules. Therefore, nomination for the shortlist requires the consent of both the athlete and the federation.
This is how the selection of flag bearers works
Since the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio, the public and Fans Together with the athletes of Team D, they will vote on the flag bearers. The votes of the athletes of Team D and those of the Fans Each score is weighted at 50 percent. The woman and the man with the highest percentage of points will carry the flag at the opening ceremony of the Milan-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics.
The opening ceremony of the Winter Games in Northern Italy will take place at four different locations. Besides the main venue in Milan, these include Cortina, Livigno, and Predazzo. Due to the dispersed locations, it is possible that the flag bearers will not be at the same place. The entrance of the teams, including the flag bearers, is planned to take place simultaneously at all locations to create a sense of unity.
About Leon Draisaitl
Leon Draisaitl has already received the NHL's Most Valuable Player (MVP, Hart Memorial Trophy) and Best Player (Ted Lindsay Award) awards, as well as the trophies for the league's top scorer (Art Ross Trophy) and top goal scorer (Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy). He was also named Germany's Sportsman of the Year. Last December, he became the first German to reach 1.000 points in the NHL.