Latest news with #MilanCortina2026WinterOlympics
Yahoo
24-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
New pro curling league scheduled to start in 2026 with hopes of prolonging the Olympic spotlight
United States skip Korey Dropkin watches his stone during his team's match against Germany at the men's curling world championships in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, Friday April 4, 2025. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP) United States skip Korey Dropkin throws a stone during his team's match against Canada at the men's curling world championships in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, Friday April 4, 2025. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP) Scotland skip Bruce Mouat reacts after his winning stone gave his team victory over Switzerland in the gold-medal game at the world men's curling championships in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, Sunday, April 6, 2025. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP) Scotland skip Bruce Mouat throws a stone during his team's match against Austria at the men's world curling championship in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, Saturday, March 29, 2025. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP) Canada skip Rachel Homan, front right, and third Tracy Fleury, front left, call a shot as Scotland skip Bruce Mouat, back right, and third Grant Hardie, back center, look on during the Battle of the Sexes curling matchup in Toronto, Monday, April 7, 2025. (Frank Gunn/The Canadian Press via AP) Scotland's Grant Hardie, left, and Bobby Lammie, right, sweep a stone during the gold-medal game against Switzerland at the world men's curling championships in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, Sunday, April 6, 2025. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP) Canada's Marc Kennedy and Ben Herbert sweep Brett Gallant's stone towards the button as skip Brad Jacobs looks on during World Men's Curling Championship action against Italy, in Moose Jaw, Sask., Tuesday, April 1, 2025. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP) The Olympic rings adorn the Stadio Olimpico del Ghiaccio, which will be called Cortina Curling Olympic Stadium, venue for the curling discipline at the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, Thursday, Jan.16, 2025. (AP Photo/Giovanni Auletta) Scotland skip Bruce Mouat, front right, lines up a stone as Switzerland's skip Benoit Schwartz-Van Berkel, back right, and Yannick Schwaller, left, look on during the gold-medal game at the world men's curling championships in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, Sunday, April 6, 2025. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP) USA skip Korey Dropkin guides a stone towards the house during his country's session against Norway at the World Men's Curling Championship in Moose Jaw, Sask., Monday, March 31, 2025. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP) USA skip Korey Dropkin guides a stone towards the house during his country's session against Norway at the World Men's Curling Championship in Moose Jaw, Sask., Monday, March 31, 2025. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP) United States skip Korey Dropkin watches his stone during his team's match against Germany at the men's curling world championships in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, Friday April 4, 2025. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP) United States skip Korey Dropkin throws a stone during his team's match against Canada at the men's curling world championships in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, Friday April 4, 2025. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP) Scotland skip Bruce Mouat reacts after his winning stone gave his team victory over Switzerland in the gold-medal game at the world men's curling championships in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, Sunday, April 6, 2025. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP) Scotland skip Bruce Mouat throws a stone during his team's match against Austria at the men's world curling championship in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, Saturday, March 29, 2025. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP) Canada skip Rachel Homan, front right, and third Tracy Fleury, front left, call a shot as Scotland skip Bruce Mouat, back right, and third Grant Hardie, back center, look on during the Battle of the Sexes curling matchup in Toronto, Monday, April 7, 2025. (Frank Gunn/The Canadian Press via AP) Scotland's Grant Hardie, left, and Bobby Lammie, right, sweep a stone during the gold-medal game against Switzerland at the world men's curling championships in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, Sunday, April 6, 2025. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP) Canada's Marc Kennedy and Ben Herbert sweep Brett Gallant's stone towards the button as skip Brad Jacobs looks on during World Men's Curling Championship action against Italy, in Moose Jaw, Sask., Tuesday, April 1, 2025. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP) The Olympic rings adorn the Stadio Olimpico del Ghiaccio, which will be called Cortina Curling Olympic Stadium, venue for the curling discipline at the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, Thursday, Jan.16, 2025. (AP Photo/Giovanni Auletta) Scotland skip Bruce Mouat, front right, lines up a stone as Switzerland's skip Benoit Schwartz-Van Berkel, back right, and Yannick Schwaller, left, look on during the gold-medal game at the world men's curling championships in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, Sunday, April 6, 2025. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP) USA skip Korey Dropkin guides a stone towards the house during his country's session against Norway at the World Men's Curling Championship in Moose Jaw, Sask., Monday, March 31, 2025. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press via AP) Curling is getting its first professional league, stocked with past and future Olympians competing in a six-week, six-team season touring internationally starting next April in the aftermath of the Milan-Cortina Olympics. The Curling Group, which owns the Grand Slam of Curling event series, announced the creation of Rock League on Thursday. The six-week circuit will include stops in Canada, the United States and Europe, where six teams of five men and five women each will play a variety of formats to be determined. Advertisement 'As an athlete, I could have only dreamed about being able to participate in a professional curling league,' said Jennifer Jones, a 2014 Olympic gold medalist who is an adviser to the league. 'Now, having the opportunity to help make that dream a reality for the next generation of curlers is a true honor – and it's what inspires us every day as we work to build this league.' There will be two teams apiece from Canada and Europe, one from the United States and one from Asia. Among the athletes signed up as captains are Olympic medalists Bruce Mouat of Scotland, Brad Jacobs of Canada and Chinami Yoshida of Japan. Korey Dropkin, a world mixed doubles champion who would represent the U.S. at the 2026 Games, will captain the American team. Canadian Rachel Homan and Alina Paetz of Switzerland, both two-time Olympians, are the other captains. John Morris, a two-time Olympic gold medalist and adviser to the league, said the captains were chosen based on leadership, ability to work with teammates and curling skill. Advertisement 'Our goal is to create a one-of-a-kind experience that brings out the very best of curling – where longtime rivals might end up as teammates, and rising stars have the chance to cement their legacy as professional athletes,' he said. ___ AP sports:
Yahoo
10-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Milan-Cortina Olympics organizers announce budget of 1.7 billion euros
Construction work takes place at the Cortina Sliding Center, venue for the bob, luge and skeleton disciplines, at the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, Thursday, Jan. 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Giovanni Auletta) Construction work takes place at the Cortina Sliding Center, venue for the bob, luge and skeleton disciplines at the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina D'Ampezzo, Italy, Tuesday, March 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno) The Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena for the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics is under construction, in Assago, near Milan, Italy, Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno) The Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena for the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics is under construction, in Assago, near Milan, Italy, Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno) Construction work takes place at the Cortina Sliding Center, venue for the bob, luge and skeleton disciplines, at the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, Thursday, Jan. 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Giovanni Auletta) Construction work takes place at the Cortina Sliding Center, venue for the bob, luge and skeleton disciplines at the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina D'Ampezzo, Italy, Tuesday, March 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno) The Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena for the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics is under construction, in Assago, near Milan, Italy, Wednesday, Jan. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno) MILAN (AP) — Organizers of next year's Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics announced an operating budget of 'about 1.7 billion euros' ($1.9 billion) on Thursday, a 200 million euro ($222 million) increase from the previously stated amount. The budget includes construction of competition venues such as the 118 million euro ($131 million) sliding center in Cortina d'Ampezzo and the new Santa Giulia ice hockey arena in Milan, which could cost nearly 300 million euros ($330 million), but not big infrastructure projects involving roads and railways. Advertisement The International Olympic Committee will also contribute about $1 billion in additional funding for the Feb. 6-22 Games, while the Italian government is funding more than $1 billion in infrastructure development to improve access to venues. Unlike recent Winter Games in Sochi (2014), Pyeongchang (2018) and Beijing (2022), most of the 2026 venues are in place and have been used for years for World Cups and world championships. Russia reportedly spent $51 billion on the 2014 Sochi Games, a price tag that is expected to stand as an Olympic record for many years. The operating budget for the 2022 Beijing Games was estimated at about $4 billion. ___ AP Olympics:
Yahoo
31-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Olympic CEO has 'absolutely no doubt' that sliding events will be held in Cortina d'Ampezzo
Construction work takes place at the Cortina Sliding Center, venue for the bob, luge and skeleton disciplines at the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina D'Ampezzo, Italy, Tuesday, March 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno) Construction work takes place at the Cortina Sliding Center, venue for the bob, luge and skeleton disciplines at the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina D'Ampezzo, Italy, Tuesday, March 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno) FILE - Construction work takes place at the Cortina Sliding Center, venue for the bob, luge and skeleton disciplines at the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, Thursday, Jan. 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Giovanni Auletta, file) FILE - Construction work takes place at the Cortina Sliding Center, venue for the bob, luge and skeleton disciplines at the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, Thursday, Jan. 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Giovanni Auletta, file) FILE - Construction work takes place at the Cortina Sliding Center, venue for the bob, luge and skeleton disciplines at the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, Thursday, Jan. 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Giovanni Auletta, file) Construction work takes place at the Cortina Sliding Center, venue for the bob, luge and skeleton disciplines at the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina D'Ampezzo, Italy, Tuesday, March 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno) Construction work takes place at the Cortina Sliding Center, venue for the bob, luge and skeleton disciplines at the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina D'Ampezzo, Italy, Tuesday, March 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno) FILE - Construction work takes place at the Cortina Sliding Center, venue for the bob, luge and skeleton disciplines at the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, Thursday, Jan. 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Giovanni Auletta, file) FILE - Construction work takes place at the Cortina Sliding Center, venue for the bob, luge and skeleton disciplines at the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, Thursday, Jan. 16, 2025. (AP Photo/Giovanni Auletta, file) With the 2026 Milan-Cortina Olympics less than a year away, organizing committee CEO Andrea Varnier said he has 'absolutely no doubt' that sliding sports will be held in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy, after testing went well last week. There was concern that the venue for bobsled, luge and skeleton might not be ready in time for next February's Games. The International Olympic Committee even demanded a Plan B option that could have the events moved to Lake Placid, New York, if things fell apart. Advertisement The International Bobsled and Skeleton Federation said last week's testing period at the track was 'successful.' Now, Varnier is confident about the pace rebuilding the century-old sliding center is on. 'We were always very optimistic, but until the pre-homologation (testing) of course, there were a lot of doubts around us,' he said. 'But we were confident, and we're very happy now.' Officials from the International Bobsled and Skeleton Federation, International Luge Federation and the International Olympic Committee will determine whether the track receives official preliminary certification. Last week's events were enough to leave Varnier in good spirits. Completion is scheduled for Nov. 5, then there would be homologation and handover to Fondazione Milano Cortina 2026 to hold the Games. Before the Olympics, the International Bobsled and Skeleton Federation and International Luge Federation are set to use the new track for international training and test events. Advertisement Varnier said it is important that the sliding sports be held in Cortina to improve the experience for those involved. 'Very happy because that would be ideal for the athletes to be all together, to stay together in Cortina,' he said. 'Will be ideal for the spectators who will have a more truly Olympic experience in Cortina, and also for for the media and all the operators that -- it would have been very difficult to follow those sliding sports somewhere else in the world.' ___ AP Winter Olympics:
Yahoo
31-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Could the United States host Milano Cortina Winter Olympic events next year?
Construction work takes place at the Cortina Sliding Center, venue for the bob, luge and skeleton disciplines at the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina D'Ampezzo, Italy, Tuesday, March 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno) (ASSOCIATED PRESS) The 2026 Winter Games will begin in just over 10 months in the Milan-Cortino region of northern Italy. But it's possible a few events might take place a whole lot closer to Americans' home — in Lake Placid, New York. Advertisement Most of the venues slated to host the 2026 Winter Games' 116 events across 16 disciplines are either already constructed or slated to be completed well in advance of the Games. The chief exception: the Cortina d'Ampezzo Eugenio Monti Sliding Centre, prospective host site for bobsled, skeleton and luge. With less than a year before the Games begin, the sliding center has not yet received final approval from the International Olympic Committee to host competitions. Built in the 1920s and named for an Italian Olympic hero, the Eugenio Monti center has hosted significant sliding events for decades, but required considerable upgrades in order to meet current Olympic sliding standards. Italian Olympic officials rejected calls from the IOC to move the sliding events to nearby venues in Austria or Switzerland, instead opting to upgrade its own existing facility. In just under a year, and at a cost of more than €118 million, the Società Infrastrutture Milano Cortina 2026 (SIMICO), a public company managed by the Italian government, has engineered the construction of a 1,730-meter, 16-turn track roughly following the original track's layout. While safety is a paramount consideration for any Olympic venue, sliding sports have a particular vested interest given the fatalities that have occurred during sliding events. In 2010, for instance, just before the start of the Vancouver Olympics, luger Nodar Kumaritashvili of the nation of Georgia died when he lost control of his luge and was ejected from the track, colliding with an unpadded support pole. Advertisement The Cortina sliding center's readiness has been such a question that Olympic organizers have reached out to Lake Placid, host of the 1980 Games, about the possibility of hosting sliding events. Unlike many — perhaps even most — Olympic facilities, which slide into disrepair and ruin shortly after the torch is snuffed and the world leaves town, Lake Placid has maintained its sliding center as one of the world's finest bobsled and luge facilities. 'We are still in a holding pattern on whether we will be activated,' Darcy Norfolk, Lake Placid Olympic Regional Development Authority communications director, told Yahoo Sports in an email. 'Should we be needed, we are here to support the sliding athletes and provide an Olympic experience from competition to celebration.' Norfolk noted that Lake Placid 'continues to be hopeful' that the Eugenio Monti facility is prepared in time 'to ensure the sliding sports are held in Italy.' Just one year ago, the abandoned Eugenio Monti Olympic sliding track was covered in snow. (Photo by Vittorio) (Vittorio Zunino Celotto via Getty Images) There's precedent for staging Olympic events far from the host country; last year, Paris Olympic organizers held surfing events in Tahiti, since there's little quality surfing on the Seine River. However, speaking of the Seine, there's also precedent for Olympic events running right up to the absolute go or no-go edge of deadlines. Paris Olympic organizers battled contamination in the Seine for months in preparation for staging triathlon and marathon swimming events there, finally completing the swimming events even after several in-Games delays. Advertisement So it's possible, even likely, that Lake Placid's dreams of hosting another Olympic event in 2026 will soon vanish. Over the past week, the Cortina track has conducted tests of bobsled and luge runs in coordination with the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation (IBSF) and the International Luge Federation (FIL). Sixty athletes from 11 countries all over the world performed 176 runs, and members of both federations have expressed satisfaction with the results of the initial certification testing, or 'homologation,' as it's known in sliding circles. "It is just fantastic to see our track for the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games taking such good shape,' IBSF President Ivo Ferriani said in a statement. 'We all know that the timeframe for the re-construction was very tight and ambitious, but SiMiCo has done an amazing job.' 'The diverse group of athletes, coaches and from various countries have put this newly reconstructed track to the test and were very happy with it. The athletes can't wait to compete at the Olympic Winter Games next February,' FIL General Secretary Dwight Bell said in a statement on Saturday. 'See you in Cortina in February of 2026!" Final approval will rest with the IOC, but the verdicts of the two sport federations will carry substantial weight. The track is scheduled to be completed by Nov. 5, with various luge, bobsled and skeleton events and training slated to start soon afterward. The Milan-Cortina Olympics are scheduled to begin on Feb. 6, 2026, although a roof and support facilities still need to be constructed to prepare the Eugenio Monti facility for its Olympic spotlight. Advertisement Sliding tracks are, by their very nature, expensive to construct and maintain; there are few in the world that meet the highest standards of competition. The intention on the part of all involved is to make the Eugenio Monti track a significant stop for sliding events in the foreseeable future. 'The sliding track in Cortina will become a fixed part of the IBSF calendar planning post-Games, and we have already worked on a multi-year plan for our events and training camps at this track,' IBSF officials told Yahoo Sports in a statement. 'This track has always been popular as a training and competition venue for teams coming from across the globe and we are convinced this will also be the case in the future.' If the IOC opts to keep the sliding events in Italy, the United States as a country won't have long to wait for more Olympic events — Los Angeles is scheduled to host the Summer Games in 2028, and the 2034 Winter Olympics will take place in Salt Lake City.
Yahoo
28-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Bobsled officials rave about Cortina track, a good sign for 2026 Olympics being held there
Construction work takes place at the Cortina Sliding Center, venue for the bob, luge and skeleton disciplines at the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina D'Ampezzo, Italy, Tuesday, March 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno) Construction work takes place at the Cortina Sliding Center, venue for the bob, luge and skeleton disciplines at the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina D'Ampezzo, Italy, Tuesday, March 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno) Construction work takes place at the Cortina Sliding Center, venue for the bob, luge and skeleton disciplines at the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina D'Ampezzo, Italy, Tuesday, March 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno) Construction work takes place at the Cortina Sliding Center, venue for the bob, luge and skeleton disciplines at the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina D'Ampezzo, Italy, Tuesday, March 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno) Construction work takes place at the Cortina Sliding Center, venue for the bob, luge and skeleton disciplines at the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina D'Ampezzo, Italy, Tuesday, March 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno) Construction work takes place at the Cortina Sliding Center, venue for the bob, luge and skeleton disciplines at the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina D'Ampezzo, Italy, Tuesday, March 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno) Construction work takes place at the Cortina Sliding Center, venue for the bob, luge and skeleton disciplines at the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina D'Ampezzo, Italy, Tuesday, March 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno) Construction work takes place at the Cortina Sliding Center, venue for the bob, luge and skeleton disciplines at the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina D'Ampezzo, Italy, Tuesday, March 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno) Construction work takes place at the Cortina Sliding Center, venue for the bob, luge and skeleton disciplines at the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, in Cortina D'Ampezzo, Italy, Tuesday, March 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno) Italy appears to be one big step closer to having the sliding events at next year's Milan-Cortina Olympics on its own track after all. The International Bobsled and Skeleton Federation said Friday that it has declared this week's testing period at the Cortina d'Ampezzo track 'successful" and that it looks forward to the 2026 Olympics being held at the rebuilt track. That's not the official word — that will likely come from the International Olympic Committee — but it is the strongest suggestion yet that Cortina's ambitious construction project will bring the Olympic bobsled, skeleton and luge races there and not require the Plan B site of Lake Placid, New York. Advertisement About 60 sliders from 12 countries, half of thm from Italy, tested the track this week in what is called pre-homologation. The reports from those sliders, evidently, were positive. 'Minor adaptions still need to be done and the main focus must remain on the finalization of the construction works,' IBSF president Ivo Ferriani said in a news release distributed Friday. "The feedback we received from our technical experts and the coaches and athletes on site this week, has been very positive. 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.' Work is scheduled to continue at the site until Nov. 5, at which time the facility — which still needs a roof and event-support buildings — will be handed over to Milan-Cortina organizers. Simico, the Italian government agency in charge of the 118 million euro ($128 million) project, reported positive results for the test runs. But it will be officials from the IBSF, International Luge Federation and the IOC who determine whether to bestow preliminary certification for the track. Advertisement Ferriani's words were an indicator that the IBSF is on board. Preliminary approval would be a big step in avoiding a backup Plan B option that the IOC had demanded and which would require moving the three sliding sports all the way to Lake Placid if the track in Italy wasn't finished in time. Lake Placid officials were hopeful that, if the sliding events were going to be awarded to the U.S., the official word would come by the end of March. Luge athletes are scheduled to have an international training period at the new track from Oct. 27 through Nov. 2, then return for a test event there in the final week of November. The bobsled and skeleton tours will hold their international training period from Nov. 7-16, followed by the season-opening World Cup races there from Nov. 17-23. The 1.749-kilometer (1.09-mile) Cortina track features 16 curves with an estimated top speed of 145 kph (90 mph) and with run times slated for 55-60 seconds. ___ AP Olympics:
