USA Bobsled & Skeleton Plans Italian Olympic Adventure After Cortina Track Test Event

For some international federations and its related member nations, the planning process for the 2026 Olympic Winter Games in Italy has been years in the making.

For the sliding community, the planning process looks to finally be able to begin. After years of uncertainty, a recent test of the renovated track in Cortina, Italy, has gone a long way in determining where its events will be held.

“We haven’t gotten the official word from IOC or Milan-Cortina, (but) I can’t imagine why we wouldn’t be in Italy, we’re proceeding forward with the expectation that we’ll be in Italy,” said Aron McGuire, chief executive officer of USA Bobsled & Skeleton. “Our biggest concern was we wouldn’t know a decision until fall and then scramble. All signs point to Italy allows us to really move forward and plan to be in Cortina.”

A total of 60 bobsled, skeleton and luge athletes from 12 nations participated in the tests at the sliding center, which was originally built in 1920. Work is scheduled to continue at the site until November 5, at which time the facility, which still needs a roof and support buildings, will be handed over to Milan-Cortina organizers.

“The feedback we received from our technical experts and the coaches and athletes on site has been very positive,” said IBSF President Ivo Ferriani. “We are thrilled about this outcome and the entire bobsleigh and skeleton community cannot wait to come back here for our World Cup in November, further training and then of course the pinnacle of all competition, the Olympic Games.”

Long Process Nears End

Luge athletes are scheduled to have a training period starting October 27 before a test event in the final week of November. The bobsled and skeleton tours will hold their international training period from November 7-16 followed by the season-opening World Cup races there from November 17-23.

“The track is fun, it has a couple corners that are technical near the top, but also some that are fast down at the bottom,” said American Kaillie Humphries Armbruster, a four-time Olympic medalist and 2002 champion in the monobob. “It’s a mix of the old and new styles of driving. I think there’s something for everyone to love.”

The 1.09-mile Cortina track features 16 curves with an estimated top speed of 90 mph and with run times slated for 55 to 60 seconds. It was rebuilt at a cost of an estimated $128 million; construction began less than a year ago and no sliding track has been built in such a short timeframe.

“To prepare that we’ll be on this track in Italy helps our athletes, our coaches, our operations team,” McGuire said. “A lot of times we think about the athletes competing — they’re at the core of what we do — then you have friends and family who want to book flights and housing and be there to support their kids. You have donors that are supporting the program who want to be there, You have sponsors who want to be there.”

The IOC had previously made clear its preference to use an active track in nearby Austria or Switzerland instead of rebuilding the Cortina venue, which had been closed since 2008. But in need of a backup option for Cortina, the IOC let the local organizers pick a Plan B — and that is how, if the track would not have been completed, Lake Placid, New York, would have been the host for bobsled, luge and skeleton at the 2026 Olympic Winter Games.

Lake Placid, a two-time Winter Olympic host from 1932 and 1980, underwent extensive renovations at all its winter sports venues including the Mt Van Hoevenberg Sliding Center track, considered to be one of the world’s most technically challenging and a new 55,000-square-foot Mountain Pass Lodge includes a state-of-the-art indoor push track.

The village recently hosted the 2025 International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation World Championships, its 11th time hosting the event overall.

“It’s a testament to the investment and the focus that New York has had on winter sport and the recognition of the legacy of Lake Placid in the ‘32 Games and ‘80 Games and the focus on USA athletes,” McGuire said. “To have a track that would be ready to host a Games for an organization like (the Olympic Regional Development Authority) to raise their hand and say they’ll be ready to be the backup plan if needed, I give them a lot of credit and recognition for stepping up and being ready to host if necessary.”

While there would have also been extensive familiarity with the Lake Placid track should it have been the Olympic host, with 305 days before the Opening Ceremony, having the chance to get certainty on what the local organizers’ plans will be is a relief.

“Knowing it a lot better than not knowing,” McGuire said. “While we were prepared to be in Italy or in Lake Placid, knowing at this point is a lot better than not knowing until the summer or later this fall.”