[2026 Milan-Cortina] A 118 million Euro Ruin? — Rush Construction of Bobsleigh Course Ignores IOC Warnings

Have you heard of the term “white elephant”?

For the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics, Italy is attempting to feed a white elephant with taxpayer money: the Cortina Sliding Center for bobsleigh and luge.

The IOC strongly urged the use of existing foreign facilities. However, the Italian government and organizing committee refused. They forcibly built a new course in Cortina, spending 118 million euros – more than double the budget.

Behind this lies nationalism driven solely by pride, disregarding economic rationality, and the spread of construction interests.

The ignored lessons of Turin

Italy already has the carcass of a white elephant lying around. It’s the Cesana-Poliol course built for the 2006 Turin Olympics.

This course, constructed at a cost of approximately 110 million euros at the time, closed just six years later in 2012. The reason was the inability to pay the annual maintenance costs, which amounted to about 2 million euros.

The truck was left abandoned with 48 tons of toxic ammonia for cooling still inside, and estimates suggest dismantling and restoring it would cost over 200 million euros—double the original construction cost.

Cesana now lies abandoned and decaying in the mountains, serving as a prime example of “failed Olympic infrastructure.”

Ahead of the 2026 Games, Italy’s Piedmont region proposed renovating the Cesana-Poliolo course for a mere 33.8 million euros. However, the government and organizing committee rejected the plan.

Reusing this “symbol of failure” was deemed too embarrassing and “politically out of the question.”

Italian politicians firmly refuse to hold the event abroad

IOC President Bach has consistently advocated against building new venues to avoid repeating the mistakes of Turin.

Therefore, bobsleigh and luge proposed using existing facilities outside Italy. Utilizing existing facilities would minimize both costs and environmental damage.

• Innsbruck (Austria)
• St. Moritz (Switzerland)
• Even Lake Placid in the United States stepped forward to host.

Then, in October 2023, President Malagò of the Milan-Cortina Organizing Committee approved hosting abroad at the IOC Session.

However, this white flag was forcibly lowered within Italy itself. It was Italy’s Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Infrastructure, Matteo Salvini, and the Governor of Veneto, Roberto Zaia.

Deputy Prime Minister Salvini insisted, “The Olympics in Italy should be held in Italy. Holding them abroad is a disgrace!” and forcibly reversed the policy.

This decision disregarded feasibility, cost reduction, and environmental protection, driven solely by emotional nationalism focused on national pride.

The “Miracle on Ice” – a rush job

The government decided to push ahead regardless, but reality proved unforgiving.

In the summer 2023 bidding, major construction firms turned away due to the unrealistically short construction period and low budget, resulting in zero bids.

Cornered, the government began slashing construction costs without regard for consequences. This became known as “Project Light.”

To lower costs, essential elements like spectator seating, parking lots, and medical facilities were removed from the plans. The contract was then awarded to the construction firm Impresa Pizzarotti in what amounted to a near-sole-source agreement.

Construction began in February 2024 and had to be completed within just one year, by the March 2025 certification deadline.

What normally takes 3 to 5 years became a crash project, completed by hundreds of workers operating around the clock. The government hailed it as a “miracle on ice,” but the reality was a postponement that shifted the burden—including additional work—onto the future.

Who will pay for the elephant’s feed?

What exactly are bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton?

These are extreme sports often called “Formula 1 on ice,” where athletes race bare-bodied or aboard sleds at speeds reaching 130 to 150 km/h.

The courses where they compete are massive “concrete snakes” stretching about 1.5 km in length with elevation drops exceeding 100 meters, requiring enormous cooling systems for maintenance.

For this reason, the newly constructed Eugenio Monti Course incurs annual maintenance costs of 1.5 million euros.

Meanwhile, Italy has only a few dozen active bobsled athletes. Italian citizens will scarcely use this grand slide.

To cover this deficit, the Veneto Region decided to divert funds from the “Neighboring Municipalities Fund.” This money is intended for revitalizing depopulated areas. The region’s future is being sacrificed to preserve Olympic prestige for a fleeting moment.

Postponed to 2028

To deflect various criticisms, the IOC and Italian government decided to bid for the 2028 Winter Youth Olympics in Italy (Dolomites-Valterrina) and use this course.

It’s an alibi, saying, “See? We’ll use it after the Games, right?” But it may only have postponed the ruins’ fate from 2026 to 2028—a mere two-year delay.

The ruins of Turin seem to foretell the future of Cortina’s second white elephant.

Will athletes’ safety be protected?

Above all else, the safety of the athletes competing on this course is paramount.

Sliding sports are always accompanied by danger.

Fresh in our memory is the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. Just before the opening ceremony, during official practice, a tragic accident occurred when luger Nodar Kumaritashvili (Georgia) flew off the course and crashed into a steel pillar, resulting in his death. The cause of this accident has been attributed to the course design being excessively high-speed and difficult.

Building a course requires meticulously calculated design and careful test runs. However, the Cortina Sliding Center was constructed in a “legendary” rush job, shortening the 3-4 year construction period to just one year.

While the IOC’s venue certification and test runs have already concluded, it cannot guarantee the detection of all design or construction flaws. Indeed, the unfortunate accident in Vancouver also occurred during the “main event” of the Olympics.

Will the IOC’s “Athlete First” principle be fully upheld in Milan-Cortina?

The answer will soon be revealed.

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2026.02.08