Kenneth Glad
A winter night in the Dolomites has become the focus of a growing legal inquiry in northern Italy. Authorities are examining whether conditions at an Olympic-linked construction site met the standards required to protect those on duty.
The Winter Games have ended in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, but scrutiny around the Olympic construction effort has not. A security guard’s death in January is now the subject of a formal investigation in northern Italy, placing worker protections back under discussion.
According to 2023 data published by Italy’s national workplace insurance authority, INAIL, 1,041 people died in work-related incidents nationwide that year, with construction among the sectors recording the highest toll.
Labor groups have long argued that large infrastructure projects, particularly those tied to fixed international deadlines, can amplify risks if oversight falters.
Italy’s Minister of Infrastructure and Transport, Matteo Salvini, addressed the case publicly, telling L’Unione Sarda he was “deeply saddened by the death of the security guard,” and had “requested detailed information on the incident, with particular reference to the contract and his duties.”
He added that workplace safety must come “before any other aspect, including the expediting of certain projects.”
How the inquiry works
Under Italian law, a workplace death typically prompts prosecutors to open a manslaughter investigation as a precautionary step. They review safety documentation, contractual arrangements and medical findings before deciding whether any charges are warranted.
According to Open, the Belluno prosecutor’s office initiated such proceedings after the January 8 death of Pietro Zantonini, 55, who had been assigned to patrol a construction area outside the future Olympic Stadium in Cortina.
L’Unione Sarda reported that Prosecutor Claudio Fabris ordered an autopsy, which found that Zantonini suffered a heart attack. Open added that investigators are examining possible “aggravating circumstances,” including exposure to severe weather or other workplace conditions.
Simico, the state agency overseeing Olympic infrastructure, previously told Open it did not manage the specific site where Zantonini was working.
One winter shift
Details of the night have been pieced together through media reports. L’Unione Sarda reported that temperatures dropped to around 10 degrees Fahrenheit as Zantonini carried out his overnight patrol near the stadium, located a short walk from Cortina’s town center.
People magazine reported that he contacted a colleague in the early hours because he was having difficulty breathing. Emergency services were called, but he died before reaching hospital care.
Through their lawyer, Francesco Dragone, the family said Zantonini “had repeatedly expressed concerns and complaints about working conditions, long night shifts, and the lack of adequate protection.” Dragone added that he “was working a night shift, outdoors, in particularly harsh weather conditions.”
The family further stated that the circumstances “bring back to the forefront the issue of safety and working conditions on construction sites and in services related to major events, particularly in view of the 2026 Winter Olympics.”
As prosecutors in Belluno continue their work, the outcome is likely to feed into a wider national conversation about how Italy balances the urgency of global events with the safety of those building them.
Sources: Open, L’Unione Sarda, People, INAIL
