Milano Ice Hockey Arena Delays Could Leave NHL Players on Untested Ice
Forget about poor conditions. Currently, there’s no ice.
As NHL players preparing to make a comeback to the Olympic Games for the initial occasion in more than a ten years, construction on the main hockey arena for the Milan-Cortina Games is cutting it close.
Local organizers announced on Wednesday that the main trial competition for the 16,000-seat Santagiulia arena originally planned for December has been moved to a more compact arena – and that no new test event has been scheduled yet.
The issue raises the prospect that there might not be a game held in the main arena until the puck is dropped for the women’s preliminary round at the Olympics on 5 February – one day before the opening ceremony.
“The timeline will be very close to the beginning of the games, the schedule is very tight. However, we were aware,” Milano Cortina local organizing committee CEO Andrea Varnier stated in a recent update.
The competition that was intended to evaluate the Santagiulia playing surface was a segment of the under-20 world championship from 8-14 December. That event has been transferred to the Rho Fiera hockey venue, which is being established inside a massive exhibition hall on Milan’s outskirts and will host secondary matches during the Olympics.
Typically, new Olympic venues are trialled at least the prior year to hosting medal events. And with a sizable hockey arena, it’s not just about the playing surface and ensuring that the playing surface is prepared and safe. It’s additionally about checking concession stands, bathrooms and all other amenities inside a brand-new modern stadium.
The Santagiulia venue, which is being built by a private company, is scheduled to become the nation's largest covered stadium. Following the Olympics, it’s being considered as a possible future host of the ATP Finals tennis event.
In spite of the postponements and worries, high-priced passes are already being sold for events at the Santagiulia venue. Seats for the men's championship game on 22 February – the closing day of the Olympics – are priced at as much as €1,400 (over $1,600). That’s more than for any other sports event at the Milan-Cortina Games. Solely passes for the inaugural and final events are priced higher.
The comeback of NHL stars at the Olympics was revealed in February of last year, with the world’s top hockey league allowing its athletes to participate in the Winter Games for the first time since 2014 in Sochi.
Men's Olympic hockey tournament is set to run from 11-22 February. Women's tournament runs from 5-19 February.
