New Venues Bring Opportunities for 2026 U.S. Winter Olympians

With International Olympic Committee praising the completed new sliding venue for the 2026 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, one of the longest-running sagas surrounding the event in Italy appears to be finished.

“This might be one of the last tracks ever built for bobsled and skeleton and luge,” said U.S. bobsledder Josh Williamson during a pre-Olympic media event in Park City. “We’ve been reusing venues, which is the right way to go. So we’re really excited to be part of this track because we may not see another new one built in our time.”

The IOC had made clear its preference to use an existing track in Austria or Switzerland instead of rebuilding the Cortina venue, a century-old track that had been closed since 2008. In need of a backup option, the IOC let local organizers pick a Plan B — and that is how, if the track would not have been completed, Lake Placid, New York, would have been the host for bobsled, luge and skeleton.

However, “I didn’t think that was a real thing ever,” said skeleton athlete Katie Uhlaender, who will compete in her sixth Games in 2026. “There’s no way Italy was going to give it up. Zero chance. Not that having a home Olympics wouldn’t have been amazing, but would it have been an Olympics? Because part of what makes it so special is being around everybody and the other sports. And if we were that isolated, I think it would have been a little disappointing.”

After the IOC Coordination Commission’s praise this month during its visit to Cortina, the track will host a World Cup event in November and athletes will then be able to learn more about it. A total of 60 bobsled, skeleton and luge athletes from 12 nations participated in March testing at the sliding center, including two from the U.S.

“They’ve taken runs and have gotten a really good feel for the track,” bobsledder Emily Renna said. “They’ve shared the knowledge with the team and the coaches. That’s helped us be better prepared.”

That preparation is in contrast to the 2022 Games in Beijing, where for bobsled driver Frank Del Duca, arriving for the Games was the first time he got to be on track.

“That we even have a World Cup and a small training period (in Cortina), I’m going to know it way better than I ever did in Beijing,” Del Duca said. “It is a brand new track but since I competed in Beijing with no practice, I don’t see it as any additional challenge because everyone will have the same amount of runs.”

That is also a key for competitive reasons, added bobsled pusher Charlie Volker: “It’s a level playing field. You look at every other track on tour and European pilots have hundreds more runs than we do. So the level playing field is very exciting.”

While it has gotten the most attention, the sliding venue is not the only new one for the Games. The Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena is a new venue, as is Livigno Snow Park, host of snowboarding.

“We have no idea what to expect as far as the course comes, so it’ll be something new and exciting,” said Madeline Lochte Bono, who competes in snowboard cross. “But at the same time, that’s a big part of snowboard cross — even re-occurring venues, they try to change it up as much as possible. So there are always new features and that’s part of my sport and learning how to look at the new features and then quickly be able to ride it and dominate it as fast as possible. So it’s something I train for every day.”

Spreading Out in Italy

Covering an area of nearly 10,000 square miles, the 2026 Games will be the most widespread Winter Olympics and Winter Paralympics ever.

The two main clusters are Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, 170 miles northeast of Milan. In addition, athletes will compete in three other mountain clusters, while the Closing Ceremony will be held in Verona, the largest city in the northeastern Veneto region.

U.S. Ski and Snowboard will have athletes in Cortina, plus Bormio (191 miles from Cortina), Livigno (171 miles from Cortina), Predazzo (51 miles from Cortina) and Tesero (57 miles from Cortina).

“It’s sort of divide and conquer,” said CEO Sophie Goldschmidt. “You obviously can’t be in multiple places at once, but we’ve been working very closely with the USOPC, who also will have team support on the ground. We’ll be able to make it work. I’ll certainly be logging the miles and going to as many of the venues as I can. I want to see our athletes compete as much as possible but be strategic about it. We’ve got a really strong team that we can split things up.”

For some athletes, the ability to be focused for a competition such as the Games may be the most important thing.

“Leading up to our own events, we’re not really focusing on what other people are doing,” said freestyle skier Kalia Kuhn. “Obviously, it would be so cool to be a spectator and watch some other events and if we have the opportunity to do that, we love to go support our fellow Team USA members. But we’re very locked in when it leads up to our own performance.”

Uhlaender, whose Olympic career started in 2006 in Torino, has seen almost every Winter Games setup imaginable. Torino was spread out while Vancouver was easy (her first hockey game was U.S. vs. Canada for the men’s gold medal). Sochi offered the opportunity to watch more hockey and speedskating. PyeongChang was spread out more, before Beijing’s pandemic protocols. So while Cortina d’Ampezzo is far from the other clusters, there will also be women’s alpine skiing and curling right nearby.

“I’m excited — it’s been 12 years since I’ve been to an Olympics where I felt like I got to really go meet people and do things,” Uhlaender said.

The Vonn Bounce

When Lindsey Vonn celebrated with the rest of the 2034 Salt Lake City bid group that was awarded the Winter Games last summer, it was another moment that emphasized her importance to the U.S. Olympic movement. A few months later when Vonn announced she was returning to competition, that became an even bigger event with a response that, Goldschmidt said, “exceeded” expectations.

“She was so competitive immediately, she got a podium — it was a boost for the whole organization, quite frankly, but definitely for the alpine women’s team,” Goldschmidt said. “To have that kind of role model and professional, it just breathes confidence and intensity and it’s been very impactful to have her back with our team. We’re thrilled. I can’t wait to see what she’ll do this season.”

Vonn’s return only increased the star power that the women’s alpine team already has with Mikaela Shiffrin, who last season overcame multiple injuries and has 101 career World Cup victories, the most by any skier, adding to her novel of a record book.

“We’re feeling that our athletes and teams are in a really good place,” Goldschmidt said. “We had some great performances last year. I feel like we’ve got more depth that can continue to represent us. This is the season when everyone is more intense, more focused because we really want to deliver for the country.”