The Empire State is gearing up to make a pitch for the 2042 Winter Olympics, a move that would bring the games back to the upstate site of 1980’s “Miracle on Ice” — and to New York City for the first time.
Gov. Kathy Hochul announced Monday an exploratory committee that will decide whether or not to bring the Winter Games back to New York State, with events split between Lake Placid and the Big Apple in a model similar to the Milano Cortino 2026 Winter Olympics, which held events in Milan and elsewhere in northern Italy.
“Milano Cortina showcased the immense possibility that comes with a dual city Olympic Games,” she said. “It’s clear we have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to build on Lake Placid’s Olympic legacy, New York City’s global platform, and the strengths that make our State unique.”
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani told reporters at an unrelated event Monday that he thinks wants to “feel the rhythm, feel the vibe” and start early for potentially planning.
“When anyone asks me about the Winter Olympics, the first thing that comes to mind is feel the rhythm, feel the vibe,” Mamdani said.
Hochul has been teasing making a formal pitch for the Olympics, saying in March the state was “primed” to bring the games to the state for the third time and the first since 1980, when the underdog US team beat Russia, 4-3 in a showdown many consider to be one of the best games of all time.
The exploratory committee include reps from both New York state and city government as well as other key private and public sector stakeholders assigned to various aspects of assessing hosting the games such as finances, community engagement and operations considerations.
Assemblyman Bobby Carroll (D-Brooklyn), a major driver of the effort, has emphasized how this year’s Milan-Cortina Olympics present a similar model for the games in New York where the city could host events in various arenas and public spaces with the Olympic facilities in the Adirondacks hosting downhill events.
“Forty-five years after the Miracle on Ice, it’s time for another miracle in New York,” Carroll said.
Two-time Olympic medalist Andrew Weibrecht, who was named as a co-chair of the games operations sub-committee of the panel, told The Post in March that it would be “silly” for New York not to try and bid for a games.
“In terms of being able to host the elite level athletes across sliding, certainly alpine skiing, Nordic skiing, biathlon – those are all there at this point. The state’s made a tremendous investment in this area,” Weibrecht said.
Switzerland is currently in “privileged” talks with with International Olympic Committee to host the 2038 games. Canada and Norway are preparing offers as backups or for future sites for 2042 and onward.