Pre-Homologation of the Cortina Sliding Center successfully completed
Cortina d'Ampezzo (FIL/29 Mrz 2025) From March 25 to 29, 2025, the new Olympic track for Milano-Cortina 2026 was tested for the first time by 60 international luge, bobsleigh and skeleton athletes. 18 lugers from nine nations completed about 180 runs on the 1,730-meter-long track with 16 curves.
These test runs marked an important milestone, as track experts from the International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation (IBSF) and the International Luge Federation (FIL) were able to inspect the track together with athletes and coaches for the first time.
FIL President Einars Fogelis concluded the Pre-Homologation with the words: "On behalf of the FIL, we are pleased to report that the Pre-Homologation for the reconstructed track in Cortina was successfully completed. This is an important milestone regarding the safety aspects of the track. Now we move into the next phase of preparation to work with MiCo and SiMiCo for our athletes to compete for Olympic medals on this stunning venue. I want to thank our athletes and coaches for the excellent team work.”
"Having attended the conclusion of the pre-homologation on site in Cortina, we are very satisfied that the process was even better than we had expected. The diverse group of athletes, coaches and from various countries have put this newly reconstructed track to the test and were very happy with it. The athletes can't wait to compete at the Olympic Winter Games next February. Credit goes out to SiMiCo for accelerating the construction under a tight timeline to prepare the track for pre-homologation as well as the all-star track crew who worked day and night to ice the track and prepared and maintain it through the process. See you in Cortina in February of 2026!", said FIL General Secretary Dwight Bell.
"We are extremely satisfied with the testing conducted on the luge track in Cortina. Testing was done with athletes and coaches representing 11 countries from Europe, Asia, and North America over 178 runs. The track was well prepared and improved daily so that final speeds achieved to date were aligned with design specifications. The FIL is extremely grateful for the multiple parties involved with making this pre-homologation both possible and successful and we are looking forward to the next phase and completion of the track infrastructure and our return in October for training and the Test Event in November. We are excited to be part of the legacy of sliding sports in the historic town of Cortina for what will surely be a spectacular Olympic Games next February”, reported FIL Vice President Sport Claire delNegro.
“With the new ice track in Cortina, those responsible in Italy have achieved something significant in a short time. Once the decision was made in favor of the track, the construction managers really stepped on the gas and achieved something incredible. The pre-homologation went incredibly well. We had never before carried out advance tests with around 180 runs from all start heights and also on fast ice without any crash. This has never happened before,” summarized Markus Aschauer, chairman of the FIL Track Commission.
Luge World Champion Max Langenhan was impressed by the new track in Cortina: "It's incredible what the Italians have achieved here in such a short space of time, at a level that is second to none. I would never have thought that. I arrived with rather low expectations because there was so much going on around it. But when you see the energy here - they really do everything for it, and you can probably expect this spirit at the Olympic Games. It's fantastic. Usually there are problems at the beginning. When a track is inaugurated for the first time, it's usually really bumpy, but here everyone went down without even touching the boards."
The 2024 World Champion, Lisa Schulte of Austria, is impressed by the new luge center in Cortina: “The women's start is long and straight, has a 25-degree incline and reminds me a little of Igls. The upper part of the track is rather flat, but there are some technical difficulties, such as the exit from turn four. From turn nine onwards, there is more of a downhill slope and thus more speed. The large and long turns in the lower part of the track are very cool, and you can really let the sled run well here. After exiting turn 11, the first low point of the track is reached, then it goes briefly flat, followed by the chicane in 12/13, the first of two uphill sections. All in all, it is a very cool track that is difficult to compare with other ice channels. The start will be quite important, but in terms of luge, everything is very good to implement. The skill will be to stay fully on track and to maximize the speed potential,” said the 24-year-old Tyrolean, who finished third in the overall World Cup 2024/2025.
“I wanted to say 'thank you to all the people who did this great job and made it possible that we could do the test-runs here in Cortina. Everybody involved, but even the track workers made an amazing job. We are very happy to be here in Cortina. The track is really nice, the ice conditions were really good,” said Romania's women's doubles athlete Raluca Stramaturaru, and her bottom woman Carmen Manolescu added: ”At the end of the pre-Olympic season, the week in Cortina felt a bit like a holiday here. It was fantastic. The Italian food is my favorite, the track is interesting but not dangerous and the scenery in the Italian Alps with the sun was amazing.”
Fabio Saldini, government commissioner and CEO of the infrastructure company Milan-Cortina 2026 (SiMiCo), said at the end of the pre-homologation: “The greatest satisfaction of these days was the looks of the athletes, who conveyed the enthusiasm and energy when testing this track, which can be described as the most beautiful in the world. This reflected the feelings of all the workers and men and women who saw the result of their extraordinary work with their own eyes. We were very proud to welcome the positive judgment of the federations, which satisfies us and encourages us to work even harder and with even more commitment to complete this work, which has already become a symbol of the Milan-Cortina 2026 Olympic Games, as planned.”
In addition, in January, the International Olympic Committee selected the Italian Alps as the venue for the next Winter Youth Olympic Games in 2028, returning to some of the iconic venues that will be used for the Milan-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, including the Cortina Sliding Center for luge, bobsleigh and skeleton.
Completion of the roofing and all the facilities next to the track is scheduled for 5 November 2025 with subsequent homologation and handover to Fondazione Milano Cortina 2026. Read more facts and figures, provided by the construction company SiMiCo here.
Photos: Josef Plaickner
