A downstate lawmaker and a former North Country state assemblyman are calling on New York state to submit a bid for a future Olympic Games.

They say a combination of New York City and Lake Placid would be a perfect marriage for all involved.

What You Need To Know

Two New York officials are calling on the state to bid for a shared Olympic Games with New York City and Lake Placid.

Lake Placid has previously hosted the Olympics in 1932 and 1980. No community has ever hosted a winter Olympics three times.

Lake Placid has the updated venues needed, and already hosts various World Cup and Olympic Qualifying events

Lake Placid is one of three communities to ever host the Winter Olympics twice. Cortina, Italy will become the fourth in February, but no place has ever hosted the games three times.

“We’ve been in the Olympic movement for quite some time; 1932, where the third edition of the Olympics, and then 1980. I mean, still, the Miracle on Ice is still one of the greatest sporting moments of all time,” Olympic Regional Development Authority Communications Manager Darcy Norfolk said.

But could it ever happen?

Well, yes.

In fact, it kind of almost did last year. No one was sure the sliding tracks in Cortina would be done and ready in time. Lake Placid and Mount Van Hoevenberg was selected to serve as a backup plan.

However, the Cortina track eventually was declared ready.

“Even though we’re not going to be hosting them, it is a testament to what we can do,” Norfolk said, mentioning all of the World Cup events and training sessions that happen in Lake Placid to this day.

Norfolk, who put together the recent backup bid, said the plan would have called for Lake Placid to join forces with New York City, which has never hosted an Olympic Games.

The athletes would have flown into the city, competed in Lake Placid and then been celebrated in Rockefeller Center.

“We were recognized for our ability to be able to do that, not only from a venue perspective, but from a operations. There’s IT, sponsorship, marketing, all the factors that go into an event,” she said.

Understanding that, Brooklyn state Assemblyman Robert Carroll has teamed up with former North Country state Assemblyman Billy Jones to call for the state to submit a bid for a full games.

Lake Placid features Mount Van Hoevenberg and Whiteface Mountain, while the city boasts Madison Square Garden, the Barkley Center and Yankee Stadium.

“One is vast and vertical, the other intimate and alpine. Together, they form an inspirational partnership: urban and rural, electric and serene, capable of showcasing the Olympic spirit to the world,” the two said in a joint release.

It is a possibility that ORDA has at least considered.

“Lake Placid is very poised to be able to do more because we have existing venues that have been maintained, as well as great investment to bring them to the, you know, world-class level that they are today,” Norfolk said.

The environmentally friendly venues are exactly what the International Olympic Committee – the decision-makers – are looking for. It wants places ready to leave, or already have, a lasting legacy.

Lake Placid will next host the FIS Freestyle Aerials World Cup in January.