MILAN — For fans of the Milan Cortina Olympic mascots, the eponymous Milo and Tina, it's been nearly impossible to find a plush toy of the stoat siblings in Milan and Cortina d'Ampezzo.
Many of the official Olympics stores in the host cities are already sold out, less than a week into the Winter Games.
''I think the only way to get them is to actually win a medal,'' Julia Peeler joked Tuesday in central Milan, where Tina and Milo characters posed for photos with fans.
The 38-year-old from South Carolina is on the hunt for the plushies for her niece. She's already bought some mascot pins, but she won't wear them on her lanyard. Peeler wants to avoid anyone trying to swap for them in a pin trade, a popular Olympic pastime.
Tina, short for Cortina, is the lighter-colored stoat and represents the Olympic Winter Games. Her younger brother Milo, short for Milano, is the face of the Paralympic Winter Games.
Milo was born without one paw but learned to use his tail and turn his difference into a strength, according to the Olympics website. A stoat is a small mustelid, like a weasel or an otter.
The animals adorn merchandise ranging from coffee mugs to T-shirts, but the plush toys are the most popular.
They're priced from 18 to 58 euros (about $21 to $69) and many of the major official stores in Milan, including the largest one at the iconic Duomo Cathedral, and Cortina have been cleaned out. They appeared to be sold out online Tuesday night.
