A major sporting hub
Lake Placid remains popular with elite and recreational athletes to this day and continues to attract a wide range of sporting events.
Local residents and visitors make extensive use of the region’s Olympic facilities and ski trails. By way of example, more than 17,000 people skated at the Olympic Speed Skating Oval across the 2018/19 season, and over 40,000 ski lessons were given at Whiteface, Gore and Belleayre, which together sold in excess of 11,000 season passes.
In total, more than 5,000 skiing, skating and sliding athletes from 30 countries trained and competed at Lake Placid’s world-renowned Olympic venues at collegiate, national and international level in 2018/19.
The venues have hosted more than 470 major national and international events and competitions since 1981. These events include no fewer than 15 world championships and more than 110 World Cup rounds in Alpine skiing, biathlon, bobsleigh, figure skating, freestyle skiing, luge, skeleton, ski jumping, snowboarding and speed skating. Lake Placid also hosted seven NCAA Division III Men’s Ice Hockey National Championships and 15 ECAC Men’s Ice Hockey Championships.
In 2019, it staged 30 senior events across 75 days of competition, more than 55 training days, over 20 junior Alpine skiing competitions and the eighth International Children’s Winter Games, which brought together 430 young athletes from 14 countries.
The 2025 UCI Mountain Bike World Cup in Lake Placid was a resounding success and a milestone for advancing year-round sport in the region. Building on its debut in 2024, when Lake Placid first hosted UCI Cross-Country World Cup races on a newly constructed course at Mt Van Hoevenberg, the 2025 edition expanded to include Downhill World Cup competition at Whiteface Mountain, making it one of only a few global venues to combine both endurance and gravity disciplines in a single weekend.
The event drew elite riders and enthusiastic spectators from around the world, delivering thrilling action across Cross-Country Short Track (XCC), Cross-Country Olympic (XCO), and the inaugural Downhill (DHI) races. This growth not only elevated Lake Placid’s status on the international mountain biking calendar but also showcased the Adirondacks’ scenic terrain and world-class facilities as a hub for summer outdoor sport. The success of the 2025 event reinforced the region’s vision of year-round athletic programming and amplified economic and community impact, further cementing Lake Placid’s legacy as a destination for high-level competition across seasons.
The venues are owned jointly by the community and the New York Olympic Regional Development Authority (ORDA). Founded by the State of New York in 1981 to protect the public’s investment in Lake Placid’s Olympic venues, ORDA operates, markets and promotes the sites and brings events to them. These sites include the Olympic Center, the Olympic Speed Skating Oval, the Olympic Jumping Complex, the Mt Van Hoevenberg Sports Complex and Whiteface Mountain.
ORDA makes these venues available year-round, maximizing the economic and social benefits they bring to the Olympic region. It has also expanded its portfolio over the years, adding Gore Mountain and Belleayre Mountain, while a new combined bobsleigh, skeleton, and luge sliding track was constructed in 2000. In 2018, New York State made a USD 240 million initial investment in Lake Placid’s Olympic venues specifically in preparation for the 2023 Winter World University Games, recognizing the significant contribution these facilities make to the New York economy.
Today, further upgrades are underway at the Mt Van Hoevenberg sliding track, including improvements to ice-making and refrigeration systems, safety features, and athlete/spectator infrastructure. These enhancements ensure the track continues to meet the highest international standards, support athlete development and competition, and reinforce Lake Placid’s position as a global center for sliding sports while extending the long-term sustainability of the venue.
ORDA also works closely with the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee, leveraging the US Olympic and Paralympic Training Center built in 1989 to enhance the training opportunities Lake Placid provides. This partnership helps maximise use of the venues.