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Why Lake Placid is a backup plan for the 2026 Winter Olympics
This time next year, the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan-Cortina, Italy will be officially underway with events like figure skating, ski-slalom and ice hockey taking center stage.
But as the official countdown begins, officials are rushing to ensure some facilities will be ready by the time Olympic inspections are due to occur next month, particularly for the sliding events. Those include luge, skeleton and bobsledding on a large, winding half-pipe track.
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— The Olympic Games (@Olympics) February 6, 2025
The next chapter in Olympic history is just around the corner: From the slopes of the Dolomites to the streets of Milano, the Winter Olympic Games are coming back to Italy for #MilanoCortina2026.@milanocortina26 pic.twitter.com/TumWU66SLe
The 2026 facility that will host those events is located high up in the Dolomites mountain range, specifically on the Eugenio Monti slope which hosted the Winter Games in 1956.
According to reports, if the Cortina Sliding Centre is not completed and fails inspections, the Games will be forced to consider the official backup site at Lake Placid, New York.
That's right, the Italian Olympics would have to host events on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean if things don't go to plan.
Mount Van Hoevenberg would facilitate as the backup for the sliding events for Milan-Cortina 2026, allowing the Games to go on as scheduled, but creating an inconvenience for athletes looking forward to competing in Italy.
Lake Placid last hosted Winter Olympic events 1980, most notably being the site of Team USA's "Miracle on Ice" where the men's hockey team defeated the mighty Soviet Union in the semifinals, eventually winning the gold medal over Finland.
It wouldn't be the first time Olympic events would be hosted thousands of miles away from the host city. The 2024 Paris Summer Games hosted surfing events in Tahiti (for obvious reasons).
Organizers are optimistic the backup plan will not be necessary but American, and even Canadian, fans of the Olympics may have want to have their own backup plans to potentially enjoy events in the U.S. well ahead of the scheduled Summer Games in Los Angeles in 2028.
More must-reads:
- One year until Milan-Cortina: What to know ahead of 2026 Winter Olympics
- Athletes who were stars for their hometown pro teams
- The 'Three-letter Olympic code' quiz
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