New York state recently announced it has put together a committee to determine if a future Olympic Games could be in the cards.
It’s a move that would see New York City join forces with Lake Placid and would need the state to support the venues in those cities.
What You Need To Know
New York state recently passed a state budget with $100 million for Lake Placid’s Olympic sites
The state has also announced a plan to form a committee to see if a 2042 (or later) bid for an Olympic Games in New York City and Lake Placid could be feasible
The funding aims to help ensure the viability of the sites for current events, tourism and future events
“We’re very unique here in Lake Placid from the perspective that we were a former host city. A lot of people like to call it that. It has a major legacy,” Olympic Regional Development Authority Communications Director Darcy Norfolk said.
It’s a legacy from the 1932 and 1980 Olympic Games – one that continues today.
“What people do not understand is how active it actually is,” Norfolk said. “There’s athletes here competing on a year-round basis.”
They come from youth sports to the Empire State Winter Games and massive international competitions, like World Cups.
“We have athletes come here from all over the world,” Norfolk said. “We have homegrown athletes that are going to the Olympics, and they’re doing that based on the support and the investment in these facilities.”
Lake Placid is home to a number of facilities used in those 1980 games, from the Olympic Center to the ski jumps, Mount Van Hoevenberg and Whiteface Mountain.
All were nearly forgotten after the 1980 games, but recently the state has put hundreds of millions of dollars back into these sites, and now they are considered some of the best in the world.
“We’re showing obviously a return on that through economic impact, but also through success and in general ways by sending athletes to the Olympics and giving unique experiences right here to our visitors and guests,” Norfolk added.
It’s a big reason why ORDA says the state has once again in this year’s budget set aside $100 million for the sites for maintenance and new projects in an effort to keep them alive.
“When technology changes, when guidelines change or requirements change, we have to upgrade as well,” Norfolk added.
However, it’s also likely there’s another reason. The state recently announced it is forming a committee to determine if New York City and Lake Placid could team up and potentially host a future Olympic Games.
“It’s all about exploring the feasibility of actually doing this,” Norfolk said. “And then when there is a report and there is a review, then all of this information will be shared to the level to really understand what we’ve been talking about for so long in terms of our capability to do this going forward with another partner could actually have it.”
If that were to happen, the games could not take place until at least 2042, which means to avoid having these sites go into disrepair once again, they would need regular infusions.
Norfolk says any projects need to be approved by the board before they can begin.
The Olympic Games already have venues picked for the winter games before 2042.