The Milano Cortina 2026 Opening Ceremony has just handed Nigeria a moment for the history books. Maryam Bukar Hassan, the celebrated poet popularly known as Alhanislam, became the first Nigerian Olympic flag bearer.
While the athletes parade behind their respective national colours, the iconic five-ringed Olympic flag is reserved for those who embody the movement’s loftier ideals: global impact, cultural bridge-building, and tireless advocacy. Standing alongside sporting titans like marathon legend Eliud Kipchoge and gymnastics star Rebeca Andrade, Maryam was in truly rarefied company.
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Here come the Flag Bearers of Peace! ✨#MilanoCortina2026 #OpeningCeremony #Olympics pic.twitter.com/lEjYDSl8Z4
— Milano Cortina 2026 (@milanocortina26) February 6, 2026
Clad in a bespoke Giorgio Armani ensemble that screamed “Quiet Luxury”, Maryam walked into the historic San Siro stadium not as a sprinter but as a UN Global Advocate for Peace. It proved that words have the power to move mountains—and even the Winter Games. For Hassan, the weight of the flag was less about the fabric and more about the philosophy it represented. “Carrying the flag ultimately meant recognising that peace is not an event, but it is practice,” she reflected with her characteristic poise. “It is a daily decision for us to humanise before politicising.”
Taking to her Instagram to share the journey, Maryam offered an intimate glimpse into her Italian experience. The video is a beautifully woven tapestry of snippets: raw emotion, quiet awe, and high-fashion moments set against the Milanese skyline. In one frame, she is seen in silent reflection amidst the Gothic grandeur of the Duomo di Milano; in the next, she is backstage, the gravity of the occasion etched on her face as she prepares to step into the light.
The roar of the 70,000-strong crowd was, by her account, a visceral shift in reality. “I had goosebumps,” she admitted. “The moment they called my name… you could feel the energy, the love, the adrenaline. It was such a beautiful moment.”
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As Alhanislam, she has spent years using spoken word to dismantle stereotypes and champion education for the girl child in Nigeria. This global platform served as a megaphone for that mission. Her message to the young girls watching from the streets of Kaduna to the hubs of Lagos was clear: “Regardless of the barriers that you’re facing… if you just stay at it, if you just leverage the resources that are around you—whether it’s social media, your art, your pen—the world will hear your voice.”
The Winter Games are now underway, but the Nigerian digital space is still vibrating from that historic walk. Critics and cultural commentators alike have lauded the IOC for recognising that “global impact” isn’t always measured in medals but in the courage to speak truth to power.
Hassan herself views the stadium as more than a pitch or a rink; to her, sport is a “rehearsal space for coexistence,” a place where culture and conflict take a back seat to shared humanity.
For Maryam, the Italian experience appears to have been transformative. She departs Milan with a final, stirring charge to her compatriots: “Whenever you step outside of Nigeria, be Nigeria. You are Nigeria. You can be that change that you want to see.” Her presence in Milan suggests a woman who arrived as a poet and stepped away as a piece of living history.
