morgenstern
Will the Winter Olympics soon be a thing of the past due to climate change?
Is climate change threatening the Winter Olympics? Norway is in the Epstein swamp. And: Cem Özdemir’s “mouthwashing problem” before the election. The situation in the morning.
Good morning, dear readers,
Tonight the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina will take place in four locations at the same time. The first competitions have already started in advance. The last winter games took place in the ski resort of Cortina in 1956. Since then, the temperature in the Alpine community has reportedly risen by an average of 3.6 degrees in February. In addition, more than 40 fewer frost days are recorded per year.
Cortina is therefore a symbol of a problem that the International Olympic Committee (IOC) is increasingly struggling with: due to melting glaciers and rising temperatures, there are fewer and fewer venues that are suitable for the Winter Games.
A study commissioned by the IOC in 2024 came to the conclusion that by 2080 only around half of the locations examined would have enough natural snow for the Winter Games. Critics are already complaining that the Winter Olympics are no longer appropriate given climate change. Proponents are calling for pragmatic solutions – this year’s venues, which are far apart without a central Olympic village, can certainly be viewed as such.
Most valuable Olympic medals of all time
But it’s not just temperatures that have risen – to the delight of the athletes who make it to the corresponding places, the value of the gold and silver medals is apparently higher than ever before. As CNN reports, this is mainly due to the continuous rise in prices for precious metals in recent years (even if prices have recently fallen somewhat). A gold medal at these games is worth just under 2,000 euros, a silver medal just under 1,200 euros. But the real value of the medals is of course the ideal one.
A tip at the end: If you would like to stay up to date with the most important sporting news and stories on the sidelines, I warmly recommend my colleagues’ Olympic blog to you.
Norway in the Epstein Swamp
This week’s newsletter was already about Norway, as well as the dark world of Jeffrey Epstein. Today both topics come together, as the country is severely shaken by the affair surrounding the wealthy financier and convicted sex offender who died in 2019.
On the one hand, there is Crown Princess Mette-Marit, who – as the files suggest – maintained a friendly relationship with Epstein. Hundreds of messages between the two were found in the mountains of data. The princess visited Epstein in Florida and the Caribbean, joked with him about his “wife hunt” and apparently even got parenting tips from him.
There is also the diplomat couple Terje Rød-Larsen and Mona Juul, whose two children appear as heirs worth millions in Epstein’s will. Rød-Larsen referred to Epstein as “his best friend” in a message. Numerous photos document the meetings and contacts between the couple and the financier. Juul has since been elevated from her ambassadorship.
And not to forget: Thorbjoern Jagland, former Prime Minister and Chairman of the Nobel Committee. On Thursday, the Norwegian police economic crime unit (Oekokrim) announced that it had opened an investigation against Jagland. Suspicion: serious corruption in connection with the deceased US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The basis for the step is information from newly published files on the case.
My colleague Steffen Gassel has broken down in detail here how deeply Norway is mired in the Epstein swamp.
5-minute talk: Cem Özdemir’s “mouth bag problem”.
He was leader of the Green Party and Federal Minister of Agriculture. Now Cem Özdemir is fighting for his real dream job: he wants to become the first Green Prime Minister of Baden-Württemberg, his home country. He would be the first country father with Turkish roots.
But even though the state has been governed by another Green, Winfried Kretschmann, for ages, the Greens are currently well behind the CDU in the polls. My colleagues Lisa Becke and Miriam Hollstein discuss why this is, what it has to do with a culinary specialty and how Özdemir wants to turn the tide.
And otherwise? More headlines
This will happen on Friday, February 6, 2026
- Crisis talks between USA and Iran planned in Oman
- Federal Statistical Office publishes figures for German exports for 2025
- Malu Dreyer, former Prime Minister of Rhineland-Palatinate, is 65 years old. (Read an interview about her birthday here)
Our star+ recommendation of the day
An account here, a deposit there and there is still cash or even a bit of gold somewhere: someone who dies often leaves behind a financial chaos that is difficult for those left behind to understand.
Sure – dealing with your own death while you’re still alive is unpleasant. If you want your loved ones to be well looked after, you should do it anyway. A simple tool helps relatives access assets.
How did you like this morning star? Feel free to write it to me: patrick.roesing@stern.de. You can also receive this morning briefing in your inbox as a newsletter. Get in touch simply click on the following link.
I wish you a good start to the day and a nice weekend!
