There’s a chance some winter Olympic events could be held in the United States in 2026.
But it’s Lake Placid, the New York site of he 1932 and 1980 Winter Games — not Salt Lake City, the newly named preferred host for the 2034 Winter Games — that’s seeking to hold bobsled, luge and skeleton competitions that are now up for grabs.
Organizers of the 2026 Winter Games in Milan-Cortina were told by the International Olympic Committee to find an existing sliding track for the events after plans to rebuild an old facility in Italy fell through.
The most frequently cited candidates are nearby sliding tracks in Austria and Switzerland, although the Italian government appears to still be trying to come up with a way to build a new track.
U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee CEO Sarah Hirshland told reporters Thursday the United States was invited by Milan-Cortina organizers about a month ago to submit a bid hold the sliding sports and is “fully supportive” of Lake Placid’s hopes of hosting.
Hirshland said the New York State Olympic Regional Development Authority that manages Lake Placid’s venues “is really excited about the prospect of supporting the 2026 Games. Our role is to support that and endorse their proposal, which we have done.”
She said the USOPC reached out to the nation’s only other Olympic sliding track, built for the 2002 Winter Games at the Utah Olympic Park near Park City, but Utah’s focus is “on 2034, as you might imagine, rightly so.”
Just last week, the IOC advanced Salt Lake City to the final stage of the new, less formal selection process for the 2034 Winter Games, with a final vote by the full membership expected next July.
Fraser Bullock, president and CEO of the Salt Lake City-Utah Committee for the Games, confirmed the decision was made not to go after the 2026 events.
“We did not bid since there are many excellent alternatives and we are focusing on 2034,” Bullock said. Asked if he backed New York’s bid to hold the sliding events, he said, “we support the USOPC’s position.”
In a statement, Bullock said the bid committees supports “Milan-Cortina’s efforts to explore options for hosting sliding sports for the 2026 Games. however, we believe our efforts in Utah need to be focused on 2034.”
He also wished the Italian Olympic organizers “the best in finding options that allow for a successful hosting of bobsled, skeleton and luge events.”
During a conference call with reporters following a USOPC board meeting, Hirshland referred to Salt Lake City’s new preferred host status for 2034 as “some wonderful winter sport news.”
She said Lake Placid’s bid for the 2026 events that was finalized this week is “another exciting prospect and another example of the U.S. truly leading in the global winter sports space.”
Lake Placid, which has considered going after another Olympics, is a “vibrant winter sports community,” Hirshland said.
“Combined with New York’s Italian heritage, the synergy between Lake Placid, New York City and Milan-Cortina makes this kind of an unforgettable and culturally rich location for sliding sports,” she said.
Gene Sykes, chair of the USOPC board, offered praise for Salt Lake City’s Olympics bid.
“Working to return the Winter Games to Utah and the United States,” was one of the USOPC’s “major work streams” this year, Sykes told reporters, calling the bid committee’s engagement with the IOC “a model of attention to detail and efficiency.”
Sykes said the IOC Executive Board’s decision to enter into what’s known as targeted dialogue only with Salt Lake City for the 2034 Winter Games “truly sets in motion the planning for a forthcoming and official Games award.”