Milan Ice Hockey Venue Delays Could Force NHL Players on Unproven Ice
Forget about thin ice. Currently, the surface isn't ready.
As NHL players gearing up to make a comeback to the Olympic Games for the initial occasion in over a ten years, construction on the primary hockey venue 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 arena that was scheduled for December has been relocated to a more compact venue – and that no new test event has been arranged yet.
The issue creates the possibility that there may not be a match held in the primary venue until the competition begins for the women's initial games at the Olympics on 5 February – 24 hours before the opening ceremony.
“The timeline will be extremely tight to the start of the games, the schedule is very tight. But we knew that,” Milan-Cortina organizing body CEO Andrea Varnier said in a recent update.
The competition that was intended to test the Santagiulia ice was a segment of the under-20 world championship from 8-14 December. That event has been transferred to the Rho Fair hockey location, which is being established inside a giant convention center on Milan’s outskirts and will stage secondary matches during the Olympics.
Typically, new Olympic venues are trialled 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 ready and safe. It’s also about testing concession stands, restrooms and all other amenities inside a newly constructed modern stadium.
The Santagiulia venue, which is being constructed by a private company, is scheduled to become Italy’s biggest indoor arena. For after the Olympics, it’s being considered as a possible upcoming venue of the ATP Tour Finals tennis tournament.
Despite the delays and worries, expensive tickets are already being sold for matches at the Santagiulia arena. Seats for the men's championship game on 22 February – the final day of the Olympics – are priced at as much as €1,400 (more than $1,600). That’s more than the price of any other sports event at the Milano Cortina Games. Only passes for the inaugural and final events cost more.
The comeback of NHL stars at the Olympics was announced last February, with the world’s top hockey league allowing its athletes to participate in the Winter Games for the initial occasion since 2014 in Sochi.
Men's Olympic hockey competition is scheduled to run from 11-22 February. Women's tournament occurs from 5-19 February.
