ROME (AP) — Forget thin ice. There is no ice at the moment.
As NHL players prepare to return to the Olympics for the first time in more than a decade, construction of the main hockey arena for the Milan-Cortina games is going awry.
Local organizers confirmed to The Associated Press on Wednesday that the main test event at the 16,000-seat Santagiulia Arena, scheduled for December, has been moved to the smaller arena – and that no new test events are planned yet.
That raises the possibility that the main arena game may not take place until the puck drops in the women's preliminary round of the Olympics on Feb. 5, the day before the opening ceremony.
“It will be very close to the start of the games, the timing is very tight. But we knew that,” Andrea Warnier, general director of the Milan-Cortina local organizing committee, said recently.
The event, which was intended to test Santagiulia's ice, was part of the Under-20 World Championships, which took place from December 8 to 14. The event has been moved to the Rho Fiera hockey rink, which is being created inside a giant convention center on the outskirts of Milan and will host minor matches during the games.
Typically, new Olympic venues are tested at least a year before the medal events. And with a large hockey arena, it's not just about the ice and making sure the playing surface is ready and safe. It's also about testing trade stands, bathrooms and everything else in a completely new, modern arena.
The Santagiulia venue, being built by a private company, is set to become Italy's largest indoor arena. After the Olympics, he is being considered as a possible future host of the ATP Finals tennis tournament.
Despite delays and concerns, expensive tickets for events at the Santagiulia Arena are already on sale. Seats for the men's gold medal match on February 22 – the day the games close – will cost as much as 1,400 euros (more than $1,600). This is more than any other sporting event at the Milan-Cortina Games. Only tickets for the opening and closing ceremonies are more expensive.
The return of NHL players to the Olympics was announced last February, and the world's top hockey league allowed its players to participate in the Winter Games for the first time since 2014 in Sochi.
The men's Olympic hockey tournament is scheduled to take place from February 11 to 22. The women's tournament will take place from February 5 to 19.
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AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/winter-olympics
