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Milan and Cortina were chosen as host cities in 2019, and while existing facilities have been largely used, new venues have been created for ice hockey and sliding sports.
A year after the Games began, the Cortina Slide Center – rebuilt on a century-old track at a cost of more than £72 million – was facing a race against time to be ready.
While that race has been won, with the opening races of the bobsleigh and skeleton season taking place on the new track in November, the same cannot be said for the Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Stadium.
On Sunday, Olympic organizers said the stadium would not be fully finished in time for the first match of the Games on Thursday, but they were “absolutely confident” that all scheduled matches would be held there.
The 11,800-seat stadium has been hit with delays and controversies – including a boycott warning from the National Hockey League (NHL).
The Milan rink, approved by the International Ice Hockey Federation, is shorter than the NHL’s minimum requirements, leading to suggestions there may be an increase in high-speed collisions. The quality of the ice has also been called into question.
From an Olympics controversy standpoint, things didn’t get any better for host Italy when biathlete Rebecca Basler was expelled from the Games for failing a drug test on Monday.
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