10. Lake Placid vies to host bobsled, skeleton and luge for Milan-Cortina 2026 in bid to stage Olympic events for the third time
In December, just when we thought we knew where the Winter Olympics would be staged until 2038 (more on that later), the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) announced that sliding facilities in Lake Placid had been proposed to host bobsled, luge and skeleton for the Milan-Cortina 2026 Winter Games just over two years away.
But before American readers get too excited about the prospect of welcoming Olympians back to New York State for the third time (Lake Placid hosted in 1932 and 1980), and having sliding events on Mt. Van Hoevenberg and medal ceremonies at New York City’s Rockefeller Center, know this is a longshot. Sliding venues from six countries submitted proposals to host the sports including Austria, China, France, Germany and Switzerland with a final decision expected by the end of January.
The winning bid will likely be strategically located nearby and in the same time zone in Europe. It’s also still possible Italy could stage the events at home despite officials being forced to look elsewhere after plans to rebuild Cortina d’Ampezzo’s Eugenio Monti track failed when no construction companies responded to an RFP.
If sliding is moved elsewhere it will mark the first time a Winter Olympics event is held outside the host nation.
[Top Story #9 on page 3]
