Upstate New York Named ‘Plan B’ Site For 2026 Winter Olympics

This is not a drill- One Upstate New York village was just named as a "Plan B" site for part of the 2026 Winter Olympics.

The Adirondack Daily Enterprise reports Lake Placid has officially been named the “Plan B” site for the 2026 Winter Olympics’ sliding events. This includes luge, bobsled and skeleton racing. The games themselves are scheduled to be in Italy for 2026, but this is a backup plan:

Italy is set to host the games, but organizers warned last year that renovations to the 100-year-old sliding track at Cortina d’Ampezzo may not be completed in time due to cost overruns."

This does not guarantee that Lake Placid will host the three sliding sports. The Lake Placid-New York state bid was chosen over two other potential host sites including St. Moritz, Switzerland and Igls/Innbruck, Austria.

Lake Placid is no stranger to the Olympics. Lake Placid previously hosted the Winter Olympics in 1932 and 1980. Of course in 1980, Team USA’s “Miracle on Ice” hockey victory has gone down in sports history as one of the greatest moments. Currently Lake Placid is an official U.S. Olympic Training Center that has undergone more than $500 million in renovations over the past eight years. The site has been used in recent years to host the FISU World University Games, the Empire State Winter Games and the World Cup ski jumping competition. You can read more about this developing story online here.

“For decades, New York State’s commitment to winter sports has kept the Olympic flame burning bright in Lake Placid,” Gov. Kathy Hochul said in a statement Wednesday. “This is a testament to the investment in the legacy that we continue to provide Lake Placid and the Olympic Movement. New York State is honored to be selected, and we will work closely with Fondazione Milano Cortina to discuss the planning in a detailed manner to stage the Plan B back up plan.”

The Winter Games are scheduled to take place February 6th - February 22nd 2026 in the Italian cities of Milan and Cortana.