Put aside poor conditions. For now, the surface isn't ready.
As NHL players gearing up to make a comeback to the Olympics for the initial occasion in over a decade, building work on the primary hockey arena for the Milano Cortina Games is cutting it close.
Local organizers announced on Wednesday that the main test event for the 16,000-capacity Santagiulia facility that was scheduled for December has been moved to a more compact venue – and that no new test event has been scheduled yet.
This situation raises the prospect that there might not be a game held in the primary venue until the competition begins for the women’s preliminary round at the Olympics on 5 February – one day before the opening ceremony.
“The timeline will be extremely tight to the beginning of the games, the timeline is very tight. But we knew that,” Milano Cortina organizing body CEO Andrea Varnier stated recently.
The event that was supposed to evaluate the Santagiulia playing surface was part of the under-20 world championship from 8-14 December. That event has been moved to the Rho Fair hockey venue, which is being established inside a massive exhibition hall on Milan’s outskirts and will stage secondary matches during the games.
Usually, freshly built Olympic facilities are tested at least the year before to holding podium competitions. And with a sizable hockey arena, it’s not just about the playing surface and making sure that the rink is prepared and secure. It’s also about checking concession stands, restrooms and everything else inside a brand-new modern arena.
This new facility, which is being constructed by a private company, is scheduled to become Italy’s largest indoor arena. Following the Olympics, it’s being considered as a potential future host of the ATP Finals tennis tournament.
In spite of the postponements and worries, high-priced tickets are already being sold for events at the Santagiulia arena. Seats for the men’s gold medal final on 22 February – the final day of the Olympics – are going for as much as €1,400 (over $1,600). This exceeds the price of any other sports event at the Milan-Cortina Games. Only passes for the opening and closing ceremonies cost more.
The return of NHL players at the Olympics was announced in February of last year, with the premier hockey organization allowing its players to compete in the Winter Olympics for the initial occasion since 2014 in Sochi.
The men’s Olympic hockey competition is set to take place from 11-22 February. The women’s tournament runs from 5-19 February.
