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Monday, April 25, 2016

The Bleak Future of the Lake Placid Olympic Center

The future of the Olympics’ presence in the Adirondacks is questionable. In a last pull for recognition, Lake Placid proposed sanctioning the 2026 Winter Games along with a host city in Quebec as a joint endeavor. For months, sports organizers in Lake Placid have worked to revive the idea of the Winter Olympics coming back to Lake Placid. In doing so, they have pushed for more state funding for Olympic venues in order to make their dreams possible. The mayor of Lake Placid has been holding talks with the mayor of Quebec City about a possible partnership for the 2026 Winter games. However, the U.S. Olympic officials said they won’t sanction a Winter Games shared between Lake Placid and Quebec, as they want the Olympics to come back to the U.S. and the U.S. only.
                  This was a tough blow to the struggling Olympic center in Lake Placid. There is growing concern about the Lake Placid Olympic venue, particularly about the outdated center’s ability to compete with other winter sport venues such as Park City, Utah. USA Luge, the last major Olympic sport headquartered in Lake Placid, is currently considering moving its facilities west to Park City. In order to stay, they have asked New York State to finance an expanded training facility in Lake Placid.
                  The question is whether or not this expansion will occur. The Olympic center is a unique aspect of the Park, and an important part of Lake Placid’s culture. However, I wonder if it is important enough to the people for them to approve a several-billion-dollar expansion project to occur in the Park. This expansion project would also be taking away state money that could be spent on other aspects of the Park, such as purchasing more Forest Preserve land. Not to mention, expanding the Olympic center will most likely involve further changes to the constitution to approve such extreme development. I am curious to see what happens regarding the expansion, and if the citizens of New York State are willing to approve the conservation trade-offs that would come with the possible return of the Olympics to the Park.

Sources


Mann, Brian. USOC Shoots Down Joint Lake Placid-Quebec Winter Games. North Country Public Radio; April 22, 2016. Web. Accessed April 25, 2016.

1 comment:

  1. Regardless of where the Olympic committee goes, the presence of the Olympics in Lake Placid will always be felt. Also, the infrastructure will continue to inspire many New Yorkers to participate in winter sports. For example, I don't believe any of us have tried ski jumping, and a good reason for that is because we didn't grow up around an skijumping facilities.

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