Indigenous Americans left evidence of their presence in the area more than 10,000 years ago after the last ice age when the Adirondacks were still frozen tundra. Through recent discoveries of prehistoric artifacts by archaeologists and local residents at more than three dozen sites across what is now the Adirondack Park, we know humans have inhabited these lands for many thousands of years, long before European settlers arrived.

The French began arriving in the Adirondack region in 1609, dramatically changing the lives of Native Americans. It wasn’t until the early 1800s that Lake Placid saw its first settlers, and by 1840, six families of European descent had built a tiny village a few miles southeast of present-day Lake Placid adjacent what is now the Adirondack Loj Road where it crosses the North Meadow Brook.

Lake Placid’s prominence as an international destination began early. With its pristine lakes, adjacent High Peaks, abundant snowfall, and the splendor of the natural environment, the stage was set.

Americans’ leisure time was rising through the late 1800s, and during that time Lake Placid became a natural hub for recreation and sport. Through the next century, it was a succession of community-minded trailblazers with a love of sport who forged the path of our Olympic legacy.

The years 1895 and 1904 were especially pivotal years. The first of those marks the founding by a group of educators of the Lake Placid Club and the establishment of a hotel on Mirror Lake in Lake Placid. The latter year is the first time the club was open through the winter months. That was the year people began to ski, skate, and sled. The year Lake Placid discovered its destiny.

Through the early 1900s Lake Placid drew increasing attention as a world-class destination for winter sports. Then in 1920 Lake Placid secured its first globally sanctioned event – the International Outdoor Speed Skating Championships. The success of this event put Lake Placid on the winter sports map. Then, in the following year of 1921, Lake Placid hosted its first International College Winter Sports Games, known as “College Week”. These games attracted the top US and Canadian collegiate winter sports athletes and were held from 1921 through 1950.

The Lake Placid Club had also built in 1920 the area’s first ski jump, located at the current Intervales site. No one could have known at that time that simple 35-meter jump would eventually become all that the Olympic Jumping Complex is today, yet in hindsight the excitement of the first jumping competition could have been seen as a signal. Held in February 1921, that event drew 3,000 spectators, nearly 1,000 more people than the recorded Village population at the time.

Not long thereafter, the community’s leadership made the remarkable happen. With the region’s reputation firmly established, Lake Placid made its bid for and was chosen to host the third ever Olympic Winter Games in 1932.

(Photo courtesy of the Lake Placid Olympic Museum)

Edward Egan of the US was the first to medal in both the summer and winter Games. He won gold in boxing in Antwerp in 1920 and gold again in the four-man bobsleigh competition in 1932 in Lake Placid

(Photo courtesy of the Lake Placid Olympic Museum)

Only 11 years old at her first Olympics in 1924 (the first ever Winter Games), Norwegian figure skating phenomenon Sonje Henie came to Lake Placid in 1932 a seasoned veteran. She was a three-time Olympic Champion (1928, 1932, and 1936) in women’s singles skating, a ten-time world champion, and a six-time European champion. Henie won more figure skating titles than any other women’s skater in history.

(Photo courtesy of the Lake Placid Olympic Museum)

Soon after Lake Placid won the bid to host the 1932 Olympic Winter Games, North America’s first bobsled run was constructed at Mt Van Hoevenberg. In the spring of 1930, the Polish engineer and famed track designer, Stanislaus Zentzytzki was hired to design the earthen track following the contours of the north slope of the mountain.

Earth and rock were dug and blasted and moved into place. This original bobrun was 1.5 miles long and made of earth construction on the straight-aways with the highest curves built of stone laid between wooden ribbing. Following the tradition of European tracks, each curve was given a name. Whiteface, Shady, Little S, and Zig Zag soon became respected and feared curves throughout the world. One turn, in particular, drew especial attention. The danger of the Whiteface hairpin turn, forced organizers to shorten the track in advance of the 1939 Bobsled World Championships.

Decades later, cross-country skiing got its start at Mt Van Hoevenberg. Built in 1966, the first 15km of trails hosted athletes from 18 countries at the 1969 Kennedy Games, a streamlined version of the Olympics.

Then, with the 1980 Winter Olympic Games being awarded to Lake Placid, improvements and expansions of the facilities began. The Olympic race loops, biathlon range and stadiums were built. Chief of Course was Chummy Broomhall, a 10^th Mountain Division Veteran who had competed in the 1948 and 1952 Winter Olympics. Chummy had served as Technical Advisor and Chief of Race for the Nordic events at the 1960 Olympics in Squaw Valley. At Mt Van Hoevenberg, he oversaw the improvement of existing trails and laid out and designed 40km of new Nordic trails and did this work with the help of the Al Merrill, US Nordic Ski Team coach in three separate Olympics (1956, 1964, and 1968). Among many other credentials, Al had also been the ski coach at Dartmouth as well as the American representative to the cross-country committee of the International Ski Federation, the world governing body of ski racing. In the winter of 1979, test events were held at these new facilities.

Also for the 1980 games, a one-mile length of the shortened bobsled track was given major upgrades with concrete construction and a new refrigeration system. Additionally, the 1980 Games required the construction of North America’s first refrigerated luge track in 1979. That was the only time in Olympic history a separate track was constructed for luge.

While the winter of 1980 was cold, it was, unfortunately, the worst for snowfall in many years. Organizers stockpiled machine made snow and moved it great distances to cover 25km of trails with a 10-inch base. Most of the snow was made onsite, but some was also trucked in from the Olympic Jumping Complex and from Whiteface Mountain.

Following the 1980 Games, Mt Van Hoevenberg was brought under the ongoing care of the Olympic Regional Development Authority, an agency created by the New York State legislature to manage the Olympic venues and protect the public investment. With the leadership of the Olympic Authority, Mt Van Hoevenberg continued to be a premier location for high level competitions from National Championships, World Cup Events, and Olympic Trials.

In 1999, the luge track was removed, and construction began on a new combined bobsled, luge, and skeleton track. Opened in 2000, the new combined track was shortened to one mile in length. This track today is considered by athletes and coaches to be among the most technically challenging tracks for sliders of all disciplines. A covering system and new refrigeration system were key upgrades which both extended the season for the track as well as created an even and fair competitive environment for the sliders. Also added were outstanding spectator viewing locations all along the track.

Throughout the last nearly 60 years, Mt Van Hoevenberg has been home to a unique and extraordinary combination of winter sports and year-round recreation. More recently, this venue has benefitted from major investments to rejuvenate and modernize the facilities for the future.

Today, its 55 km of cross-country ski trails feature an expanded new biathlon range and the world’s largest, most powerful snowmaking system devoted to Nordic skiing. For these latest major trail infrastructure improvements, Olympic Authority Sport and Event Coordinator Kris Cheney Seymour served as Chief Trail Designer and Homologation Construction Compliance Officer, bringing significant experience not only as an athlete and coach but also in design and compliance for multiple sport and trail projects through his career . Having grown up in the Adirondacks, Kris began his career coaching Nordic skiing. Through the years, he was development coach of eight U.S. Olympians, including Olympic Champion Bill Demong and World Champion Lowell Bailey. He also coached local Olympians Haley Johnson, Annelies Cook, and Tim Burke and was the recipient of the USOPC Biathlon Development Coach of the Year award in 1999. Additionally, Allan Serrano worked with Kris as FIS Head Trail Designer and Homologation Consultant as did John Aalberg, FIS Inspector.

There now also stands a new Mountain Pass Lodge set between the Nordic trails and the combined track. It’s an outstanding facility for athletes, recreationists, and spectators alike with wonderfully decorated multi-use spaces as well as shops and dining. Inside the lodge is also a new indoor bobsled and luge push track and a sprint track for training year-round, the only one of its kind in the country. The indoor push track is accompanied by an indoor sprint track and other athlete facilities that make it a highly appealing site for year-round training by sliding athletes at all levels. With vast experience in the industry and bringing expertise in design and architecture, Kris and Venue Manager Rebecca Dayton collaborated on the the features, design, layout, and other aspects of the Mountain Pass Lodge and its push track and multi-use spaces. Today, the lodge stands as a model of integration of sport, recreation, and event use, which was a primary focus of the design collaboration.

As evidence of that integration, there’s a new indoor climbing center that provides all ages and abilities a safe and fun environment to learn and practice the sport of rock climbing throughout the year. Outside, a new paved roller ski track hosts summer Nordic races and athlete training as well as opportunities for visitors in all seasons to experience the sports of luge, skeleton, and biathlon. An extensive mountain biking trail network is highly popular, too, and the trails are increasingly popular for hiking and trail running. Summer and winter, visitors also love the on-track bobsled experience, a long running attraction for tourists to get to know a sport firsthand that very few every get to try. Even more popular yet is the exhilarating new Cliffside Coaster, North America’s longest amusement ride. The Coaster provides audio narration along the way, recounting the history of bobsledding at Mt Van Hoevenberg as it follows the old 1980 track, still visible along the way.

With so many available activities, Mt Van Hoevenberg is a destination in itself. One with a wide range of activities that help parents nurture in their young folks a love of the great outdoors, and Pathfinders is a program developed especially for that purpose. It offers children exceptional chances to develop life-long skills in mountain biking, hiking, and trail running while a variety of additional programs for youth as young as three years old help them develop rock climbing skills in a safe and comfortable indoor environment.

The newest addition to this array of activities is the new Mt Van Hoevenberg East Trail (MVHE). Departing from the Mountain Pass Lodge, MVHE represents a new model of sustainable trail design. Hikers and runners (and snowshoers in winter) can access the tremendous views from the summit of Mt Van Hoevenberg via a trail that represents a new standard in hiking trail construction. With a trail head right at the Lodge, trail users also enjoy safe parking and the numerous amenities at the Lodge.

Today, the myriad improvements and additions at Mt Van Hoevenberg have this venue standing uniquely in the world as a model for four-seasons recreation, tourism, and world-class training and competition.

Some of the athletes who have trained extensively at Mt Van Hoevenberg:

Lowell Bailey, Biathlon – Four-time Olympian and World Champion Gold Medalist

Tim Burke, Biathlon – Four-time Olympian and World Champion Silver Medalist

Hunter Church, Bobsled – Olympian and World Cup Gold Medalist

Bill Demong, Nordic Combined – Five-time Olympian and Olympic Gold Medalist

Eddie Egan, Bobsled – Olympic Gold Medalist and only athlete to win Gold in Summer and Winter

Erin Hamlin, Luge – Four-time Olympian and first American of any gender to medial in luge singles

Andrea Henkel-Burke, Biathlon – Four-time Olympian and four-time Olympic Medalist, including Gold

Haley Johnson, Biathlon – Two-time Olympian

John Napier, Bobsled – Olympian and US National Champion

Maddie Phaneuf, Biathlon – Olympian and World Cup Bronze Medalist

Ashley Walden, Luge – Olympian and Two-time World Champion Silver Medalist

Located in the heart of Lake Placid, the Olympic Center is home to many cherished moments in Lake Placid’s history. To this day, its combination of ice surfaces and arenas remain a highly used sports and events hub, hosting hundreds events each year from hockey tournaments for all ages to public skating to skating camps and classes to national and international competitions.

Plaques and banners adorn the hallways highlighting achievements of the past. For 90 plus years, the Olympic Center has served as not only a venue for Olympic competition but also as an important training facility for the many who went on to compete and win in the Winter Olympic Games, win titles, and achieve fame in their sport.

Dick Button, for example, trained in Lake Placid under coach and mentor Gustav Lussi in the 1940s and 50s. Lussi’s influence on the sport of figure skating was significant, but perhaps his greatest achievement was nurturing Button’s rise and unparalleled impact on the sport. Button’s many awards and achievements include two-time Olympic champion (1948 and 1952), five-time World Champion (1948 to 1952), the first U.S. World Champion, and the only non-European man ever to be awarded European Champion (1948). He was also the first to land a double axel jump in competition (1948) and successfully perform the first triple jump of any kind (a triple loop in 1952). In collaboration with Lussi at the Olympic Center’s 1932 Jack Shea Arena in Lake Placid, Button also invented the flying camel spin. After his competitive years, he provided Emmy-Award-winning commentary for televised figure skating competitions beginning with the 1960 Olympics through the 2010 Games. Additionally, he served as a leader of the international figure skating community, advocating for and founding artistic skating companies, including Ice Dance International and Ice Theater New York.

The arena in which he trained holds a remarkable story in itself. In April 1929, when Lake Placid was chosen as the host of the 1932 Olympic Winter Games, the local organizing committee decided to build an arena. Excavation work was completed and foundation work began in August 1931. The arena was dedicated on January 16, 1932, less than a month before the games began. This new facility consisted of two of the five current Olympic Center sport venues. They are the venues now named the 1932 Jack Shea Arena and the James C. Sheffield Speed Skating Oval.

Importantly, the 1932 Arena was the world’s first ever indoor ice arena used in an Olympics, setting the standard for all future competitions to come. At that Olympics, then New York Governor Franklin D. Roosevelt proclaimed the Third Olympic Winter Games open, and after the cannon was fired and the Olympic flag raised, Lake Placid’s own Jack Shea, a speedskater, recited the Olympic oath of amateurism. That same morning, Shea won the 500-meter speedskating race and was the first to win a Gold Medal at the 1932 Games. He was also the first athlete in Olympic history to receive a medal on top of the first ever victory podium used in an Olympics.

Also unforgettable at the Olympic Center at those 1932 Games was Sonje Henie of Norway and her Gold Medal performance. Henie competed in the 1924 Winter Games in Chamonix France when she was 11 years old and finished last. She then went on to win gold at the 1928, 1932, and 1936 Olympics.

The Olympic Center’s three other venues were built in advance of the 1980 Olympics: The Field House US Ice rink (later renamed the USA Rink), the Field House International Rink (now the 1980 Herb Brooks Arena), and the Lussi Rink (now the Lake Placid Conference Center). What was known as the Link Building was also constructed to connect the 1932, 1980 and USA Rinks. That building would later and for many years house offices of the Olympic Regional Development Authority when it was created by the NY State legislature in 1982.

The Olympic Center hosted many remarkable performances at those 1980 Winter Games. It was outside on the oval where Jack Shea had won Gold in 1932 that Eric Heiden stunned the world in 1980 with his absolutely unprecedented domination of men’s speedskating events, winning five Gold Medals. It’s a feat that’s never been accomplished again in any sport in Winter Olympic history. As legend has it, Heiden nearly missed one of those races, having overslept after staying up late watching the US Men’s Hockey Team at the Olympic Center.

The series of 1980 Men’s Hockey Gold Medal wins includes the most iconic moment in sports in the 20^th Century, the Miracle on Ice victory, an unexpected and triumphant victory over the dominating Soviet Union professional team. It was a game that shook the Olympic Center and roused the entire nation. While ice hockey had long been ingrained in the culture and history of Lake Placid, that game sealed the deal. Today, children coming to play hockey in these famed arenas and their parents, too, get extra excited and remark on the special opportunity it is for them to skate and play on this cherished ice surface.

The Miracle on Ice was such a remarkable event not only for the victory itself but for the way it was achieved. The belief in these young amateur athletes that they could in fact win over the Soviet juggernaut, elevated their play and made that 4 to 3 final score a reality. Decades later, that game and that Gold Medal series of games lives on in the hearts and memories of a nation and certainly all those who visit the Olympic Center. For many people, just walking into the Olympic Center and especially the 1980 Herb Brooks Arena triggers powerful memories and emotions.

In a lighter but still unforgettable moment, flugelhorn artist, jazz legend, and 70s pop music icon Chuck Mangione played his famous song, “Feels So Good,” during the 1980 Games’ closing ceremonies while Dorothy Hamill (Olympic figure skating gold medalist in 1976) skated elegantly around the rink to the music.

In honor of so many extraordinary moments, New York State opened the Lake Placid Olympic Museum in 1994, making the Olympic Center the official headquarters of the history of our little Village. As the only North American location to have hosted two Winter Olympics, it is the responsibility of the museum and its staff to tell the stories and preserve the tangible history as well as serve as the keepsakes of the spirit of Lake Placid’s remarkable Olympic Legacy. A visit to this second largest collection of Winter Olympic artifacts in the world leaves no doubt why Lake Placid is the “Winter Sports Capital of the World.”

In 2022, the New York State Olympic Regional Development Authority completed an extraordinary period of transformational construction projects that are not only serving the organization’s mandate and mission but also simultaneously repositioning the region’s appeal and stature in the wide world of winter sport. The completion of projects at the Olympic Center marked the last of this series of projects and have rejuvenated this venue’s essential elements of the Olympic Legacy. In their refreshed and revitalized splendor, they now enter a bold new era.

The James C. Sheffield Speed Skating Oval has a new refrigeration system, an entirely new track base, an artfully landscaped entry plaza for ceremonies and spectators, updated flagpoles and the 1980 Parade of Nations, environmentally friendly LED lighting, a new hockey box, and its new facility for media, athletes, officials are all parts of bringing the oval once again to international standards and making it among the best outdoor speedskating facilities anywhere for training and major competitions. In fact, during the March 2022 FISU World University Speedskating Championships, improved track conditions laid the foundation for athletes to set an unprecedented 10 new track records, including two records set in 1980 Gold Medal performances by Eric Heiden. The following winter, some of those same records and others also fell at the 2023 FISU World University Games.

In the 1980 Herb Brooks Arena and the 1932 Jack Shea Arena, a host of improvements is not only breathing new life into their use as modern sport and entertainment venues but also elevating their efficiency, comfort, and aesthetic appeal. New scoreboards (and a jumbotron in the 1980 arena), seating, concessions, restrooms, locker rooms, refrigeration, HVAC systems, concourse areas, high-efficiency LED lighting, fully electric Zambonis are key improvements.

The Lake Placid Olympic Museum – the official chronicler of the region’s glory and keeper of its history’s tangible vestiges – now welcomes visitors to an immersive learning experience that is as inspiring as it is informative. Newly re-imagined spaces feature state-of-the-art interactive 3D displays, experiential learning exhibits, athlete stories, never-before-seen film footage, and treasured artifacts. A visit there is an exciting tour through time. One that not only recounts Lake Placid’s rich winter sports history but also conveys the ideals of its legacy. The museum is a place visitors can discover the boundless human spirit that is the driving force of Olympic champions. A spirit that lives in each of us.

Adjacent the museum is an expanded Olympic retail store. Offering souvenirs, keepsakes, memorabilia, and more, it’s a fun chance for visitors to take home their own small slice of history. The museum and shop are the primary features inside the ground level entrance of the Miracle Plaza, the structure so exquisitely connecting the 1932 Jack Shea Arena with the 1980 Herb Brooks Arena and the USA Rink.

Just above on the Miracle Plaza’s mezzanine level is an expansive new dining space with a sleek and contemporary vibe. Named for the independent New York Rangers’ ice hockey farm team that called Lake Placid home from 1946 to 1952, Roamers bar and café offers a casual and satisfying internationally inspired menu with eye-popping, panoramic views of the Olympic Village and the Adirondack High Peaks. The totality of this unique dining experience, just steps away from two historic rinks, is a delight for the palate, the eyes, and the heart.

These improvements make the Olympic Center one of several venues that together are leading the world in offering training and competition venues for athletes at all levels while also providing a wide range of healthy recreation and leisure activities for all. In this way, the vision that has maintained for nearly a century Lake Placid’s pre-eminence in the world of winter sport is very practically and brilliantly aligned with ORDA’s mandate to provide the North Country a robust economic engine.

Additionally, achieving excellence in these realms while operating within the blue lines of both the Adirondack and Catskill Parks is complex work that demands a sincere, forward-looking commitment to sustainability. ORDA has adopted this responsibility with vigor to set an example for the world in preserving our precious winters. This commitment is demonstrated in the design, construction, and ongoing operations of the Olympic Center with investments in everything from the new ultra-efficient refrigeration systems to the electric Zambonis, the LED lighting, a switch to propane from fuel oil, and even the use of the excess heat produced by the refrigeration system to melt snow on the sidewalks outside the Olympic Center, thereby reducing salt use. As a result of these and other investments in sustainable design and operation, the Conference Center is LEED Gold Certified by the US Green Building Council, and the Olympic Center and ORDA are key partners in a New York State Olympic Region initiative that works together to preserve the sensitive ecology of the Adirondack Park. In fact, using a metrics-based approach, this community effort has also achieved LEED Gold Certification for the entire Olympic Region. Thus, the rejuvenation of the Olympic Center has been accomplished in unison with these tremendous advancements toward a more sustainable future.

A handful of the many athletes who have trained and competed at the Olympic Center:

Charles Jewtraw, Speedskating – the first Gold Medalist in the history of the Winter Olympics (Chamonix, France 1924)

Dick Button, Figure Skating – Two-time Olympic Gold Medalist and the first ever US World Champion

Scott Hamilton, Figure Skating – Olympic Gold Medalist and four-time World Champion

Ilia Malinin, Figure Skating – 2023 National Champion and the first in the world to complete a quad axel in competition

Nathan Chen, Figure Skating – 2022 Olympic Gold Medalist

Jack Shea, Speedskating – Olympic Gold Medalist

Sonja Henie, Figure Skating – Three time Norwegian Olympic Gold Medalist

Lake Placid’s ski jumps are iconic. Athletes, locals, and visitors alike marvel at the towers. No one is immune to being awe-struck by the courage of the athletes who fly off the end of those jumps. The tallest structures between Albany and Montreal, they are a powerfully distinctive feature of our local landscape.

Their history is equally striking. Just consider, for example, the relatively crude equipment used more than 100 years ago when ski jumping first began in Lake Placid. Thin wooden skis. Leather bindings. Basic leather boots. Wool clothing. And no helmet. To ponder the advances in the technology and the height of the jumps over the years is also fascinating.

The first recorded jump on skis – anywhere – was made in 1808 by Ole Rye of Norway when he launched himself about 30 feet. It wasn’t an official sport, however, until Sondre Norheim won the first-ever ski jumping competition in 1866 in the Telemark region of Norway. Sondre was the first to use willow, cane, and birch root to bind the boot to the ski, revolutionizing skiing and making ski jumping possible. After the sport began to “take off” in Norway, immigrants brought it to the US in the late 1800s.

The Lake Placid Club, which first opened to guests through the winter months in 1904, built the first ski jump at the current Intervales site in 1920 using the hillside itself as the jump surface. No one could have known at that time that simple 35-meter jump would eventually become all that the Olympic Jumping Complex is today, yet in hindsight the excitement of the first jumping competition could have been seen as a signal. Held in February 1921, that event drew 3,000 spectators, nearly 1,000 more people than the recorded Village population at the time. As the first major sport competition ever staged in Lake Placid. A seed, of sorts, from which grew everything the Olympic Village is today. It’s worth noting on that auspicious occasion, the longest jump that day, made by Anthony Maurer of Switzerland, was recorded at 124 feet.

In the coming years and decades, the jumps at the Intervales complex would be renovated, added to, and made ever larger many times over. In 1923 the singular jump on the site was enlarged to 50 meters. In 1927, a steel tower was added, raising the jump to 60 meters. And again, the following year, the tower was raised to 75 meters. A smaller, 40-meter jump had also been built to facilitate training in advance of the 1932 Olympics.

Ski jumping was made an Olympic sport at the first Winter Games in 1924 at Chamonix, France. At the 1932 Games in Lake Placid on that steel 75-meter tower, 10 of 17 nations competed in ski jumping. Norway swept the podium in the only jumping event at the time, the individual men’s competition.

After the 1932 Olympics, the 1950 World Championships in ski jumping were held in Lake Placid also on the same 75-meter tower. It wasn’t until 1977 that the old tower was dismantled, and new 70- and 90-meter jumps were constructed in advance of the 1980 Winter Olympics. By then, the sport consisted of two events – the Normal Hill and the Large Hill. That year 18 nations participated in ski jumping with Austria’s Toni Innauer taking Gold on the Normal Hill and Finland’s Jouko Törmänen winning on the Large Hill.

After the 1980 Winter Games in Lake Placid, New York State created the Olympic Regional Development Authority (ORDA) to maintain facilities and drive economic development. By all measures, that work is a brilliant and continuing success. ORDA remains devoted to this this original purpose by facilitating training opportunities for athletes, providing four-seasons recreation for a diverse population, and hosting a broad spectrum of events while continually striving to improve and further develop all facets of operations. The benefits of this work are far reaching, and today, ORDA is a global leader in sport and recreation with an ever-vigilant focus on results and sustainability.

Through the years, international standards for ski jumps naturally change due to advances in the sport and the equipment jumpers use as well as other factors, not the least of which is athlete safety. To keep the jumps on the two towers in compliance with standards, the landing hills were re-graded in 1994, increasing their official height to 90- and 120-meters.

The 40-meter training hill also saw changes through the years. In the late 1960s, volunteers regraded the hill and reconfigured the takeoff, making it a 48-meter jump. To keep pace with athlete development needs, Town crews built a new tower for that outrun in 1998. Today, that jump, which lies to the right of the large hill’s outrun, is still used for training in winter.

A Freestyle Aerial Training Center was also added for year-round training and competition. The acrobatic discipline known as Aerials has athletes skiing off a much shorter but steeply inclined jump that propels them as much as 20 meters into the air above the landing area. In the air, they perform multiple flips and twists before landing on a steeply inclined hill (winter) or a large swimming pool (summer). In the pool, a burst of air is sent up from the bottom just before the athlete lands in the water, breaking up the surface tension to reduce the impact of the landing for the skier.

In more recent years, discussions began on upgrading the jumps, particularly the 90- and 120-meter hills. Both the International Ski Federation and U.S. Ski Jumping recommended improvements to meet new standards. Aligning the venues to meet advancing standards would ensure the venue could remain useful and continue attracting national and international competitions. It was also necessary to provide a safe and effective environment for training throughout the year. And a big part of that vision included adding elements beneficial to tourists and the general public, too. Funding was approved in 2019, and a series of rejuvenation projects began to upgrade the jumps.

There were many improvements made to the jumps and the infrastructure across the Intervales site. One key to it all was the new ceramic frost rails that were added to the “inruns” (the side-by-side ski tracks in which athletes descend the towers before launching into the air). The old inruns were always an issue with temperatures fluctuating. Today, the upgrades provide a consistent, fair, safe surface for athletes to achieve the speed they need for jumping. The new frost rails also make maintenance much easier, helping crews keep the jumps always ready for training throughout the year. Additionally, they permit safe jumping without snow, a big change that not only allows athletes to train at the facility year-round but also for the Olympic Authority to host national and international competitions in all seasons.

Another key was re-contouring the landing and adding underground infrastructure to meet new standards for the profile of the hill and the safety of the landing surface. The “outruns” (the flat to slightly uphill portion allowing the jumper to stop) were also regraded. Both the landing hills and the out-runs were covered in a new high-tech, long-lasting artificial surface that resembles grass. With a little water sprayed over the top, athletes can jump and land safely without snow, anytime of year. And in winter the new profile means the hills require less snow to achieve the optimal profile for athlete performance and safety.

The official height of the jumps is now HS 100-meter and HS 128-meter, a designation signifying the hill size from the takeoff to the farthest landing point, all calculated on the technical geometric specifications of the hill. The hill length is used for the calculation of the jumpers’ distance, a number that is combined with style points awarded by judges for overall points in competition. Measuring jumper’s distances was formerly done by people positioned along the hills who would signal where a skier landed. Now, it’s performed automatically by an advanced video triangulation system that’s accurate, reliable, and fair in competition.

Additional venue upgrades also include a new, faster, and more efficient snowmaking system as well as the replacement of the slower chairlift system with a comfortable eight-person, ADA-compliant gondola. The new Skyride gondola transport system carries athletes, coaches, officials, equipment, spectators, and tourist visitors from just outside the base lodge to the base of the towers and new decks for up-close viewing of competitive events and training.

Additionally, the gondola carries visitors to the launch deck of a new zipline course. This added attraction parallels the path of a jumper from the HS 100-meter tower, allowing visitors to feel for themselves the flight of a ski jumper launching into the air. The zipline attraction increases the use of the venue and improves the experience for visitors.

Finally, there’s an all new Intervales Base Lodge that provides everyone – coaches, teams of athletes, spectators, and tourists throughout the year – outstanding opportunities to see the training and competitions and experience everything the Olympic Jumping Complex has to offer.

This series of upgrades is once again putting Lake Placid on the international ski jumping map and positions the Olympic Jumping Complex as a sought-after destination for athletes and tourists alike. The jump towers and the glass elevator to the observation deck are still among the more captivating and entertaining activities for visitors to the region.

Completed in 2021, the series of projects that rejuvenated this historic venue are all vital to keeping it, and our region’s Olympic legacy, alive and thriving. The first event at the new jumps was the U.S. National Trials for the 2022 Olympic Games, a nationally televised event beaming images of Lake Placid into homes around the country on Christmas Day. The summer of 2022 saw nearly constant training by athletes and two major fall competitions that also provided visitors a festival atmosphere and spectating opportunity.

After an early 2022 winter season filled with training, the jumps were host to the largest event since the 1980 Winter Olympics – the 2023 FISU World University Games. With Individual, Team, and Mixed Relay Ski Jump competitions, plus Nordic Combined events over the 11-day event, the new jumps gave athletes from around the world a platform to shine while cameras beamed images of Lake Placid to a global audience. Then, right on the tail of the tremendously successful FISU Games, the Olympic Jumping Complex hosted a sold-out crowd for the FIS Ski Jumping World Cup, the first World Cup in Lake Placid in more than three decades.

This venue is vital to Lake Placid’s position as the winter sports capital of the world, and the recent improvements are vital to the Olympic Authority’s maintaining that prestigious reputation into the decades to come. Today, the flame still burns brightly, and Lake Placid’s position in the world is rising. After more than a century of jumping in Lake Placid, the Olympic Jumping Complex remains a valuable asset that will yield extraordinary results for decades to come.

Athletes who have trained at the Olympic Jumping Complex:

Art Devlin (1922 to 2004) – Competed in the 1950s, finishing fifth in the individual large hill event at the 1950 FIS Nordic World Ski Championships held in Lake Placid. Selected for five Winter Olympic Games and competed in 1952 and 1956, where he finished 15^th and 21^st, respectively, in the large hill. Also, served as an instrumental community leader in bringing the 1980 Olympics to Lake Placid.

Jay Rand (born 1950) – Competed in the 1968 Winter Olympic Games and the World Championships in 1970 and 1974. Served as the manager of the Olympic Jumping Complex for 15 years after the 1980 Games and manager of Whiteface Mountain for 15 years after that. Also served as a supervisor for the Town of North Elba, in which the Village of Lake Placid is located.

Bill Demong (born 1980) – A Nordic Combined skier and the first American ever to win an Olympic Gold Medal in a Nordic sport. He is also a five-time Olympian who competed in Nagano, Salt Lake City, Torino, Vancouver, and Sochi. He learned to jump in the New York Ski Educational Foundation (NYSEF) program in Lake Placid and attended the National sports Academy, also in Lake Placid. After retiring from competition, he served as the President and CEO of Nordic Sport.

Peter Frenette (born 1992) – Placed in the top 20 at the Continental Cup competition in Japan in 2009. He then competed at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, finishing 11^th in the team large hill, 32^nd in the individual large hill, and 41^st in the individual normal hill events.

Tate Frantz (born 2005) – Currently seventeen-years-old, this Nordic Combined athlete chose last year to focus on Ski Jumping after experiencing chronic knee pain. Growing up training with NYSEF and local Lake Placid coaches, he was first named to the U.S. Men’s Junior National Team in 2020 and has since been competing internationally at the Continental Cup level and in Junior World Championships. For this event, he returns to compete in his own hometown in his debut World Cup event as the youngest athlete in the competition this year.

Nature made Whiteface a formidable mountain, but Olympic history and world-class events carved it into a leading ski destination. Long before Europeans arrived in the Adirondacks, however, Native Americans knew this large and powerful mountain well and gave it various names similar to its current one, all of which referred in different ways to the white slopes created by rockslides and snow. It wasn’t until the late 19th century that the mountain gathered enough attention for it to be the very first high peak to be given an officially recognized name, Whiteface Mountain.

The mountain’s skiing history began with the arrival of Norwegian skier Herman Smith-Johannsen, considered by many as the person who brought skiing to North America. Johannsen came to the Adirondacks in the 1920s and designed the first ski trails on Whiteface. Otto Schniebs and Hannes Scheider joined Johannsen in his pioneering work, creating a ski area on Marble Mountain, the first development on the slopes of Whiteface.

Before 1930, ski jumping and cross-country skiing were the predominant ski sports in the area. Though Alpine skiing was not yet a part of the Olympics in 1932, the excitement of the Lake Placid Games increased the popularity and public interest in alpine skiing around the state. This time period also saw the construction of what is now the Veterans Memorial Highway. Conceived and initiated prior to the Great Depression and funded by the State of New York, the highway opened in 1935 with an average grade of eight percent and was secondarily promoted as the longest beginner ski trail in the state.

In 1938, Johannsen and members of the Lake Placid Ski Council began clearing what is now the Wilderness trail on Little Whiteface, creating New York’s first certified Class A racing trail.

Though 20 miles of additional trail were approved in 1941, World War II put trail development on hold until 1948. After the war, the Memorial Highway turned into a popular way for skiers to access trails on the lake side of the mountain. At that same time, Marble Mountain also offered a T-bar and four rope tows serving five ski trails.

Then in the 1950s, New York Governor Averell Harriman and Belleayre Mountain’s manager Arthur Draper collaborated to spur the State legislature to authorize $2.5 million to create additional trails and install lifts, including one that met requirements for hosting the Winter Olympics. Whiteface was Mountain Ski Center officially opened January 25, 1958.

A series of improvements followed that yet further prepared Whiteface to successfully host the 1980 Winter Alpine events.

After the 1980 Olympic Games and under Olympic Authority’s management, Whiteface became a major training venue for ski racing and hosted many US National and World Cup competitions.

The Cloudsplitter Gondola was opened in 1999, providing the first-ever lift directly to the top of Little Whiteface Mountain. The Face Lift detachable quad was installed a few years later, and in recent years, numerous other improvements have been made:

• New Bear Dean Learning Center with a new lodge, new covered carpet conveyor lift, a new quad lift, new snowmaking, and new trails, all with access to the main base area
• Major addition to terrain in 2008, Lookout Mountain, that includes the Wilmington Trail, the Northeast’s longest intermediate trail at 2.5 miles
• New Legacy Lodge replacing the Mid Station
• Expansion of the New York Ski Educational Foundation (NYSEF) building
• Trails widened to meet international race standards
• Upgrades to existing lifts and gondola as well as additional new lifts
• Snowmaking systems upgraded to among the world’s most powerful and most efficient, with much of the energy coming from renewable solar, allowing the mountain to turn sunlight into snow. Over a 25-year period, this renewable energy source will offset 58,888 tons of carbon dioxide, the equivalent of taking 12,397 cars off the road

The mountain today boasts 96 trails stretching 25 miles and encompassing three peaks, offering a tremendously vast diversity of terrain with 98 percent of all trails equipped with snowmaking. With the greatest vertical drop east of the Rockies, Whiteface is a place to go big. It’s also one of sweeping vistas that inspire awe.

Interesting Historical Facts:

• Over the past 20 years since this has been recorded, the earliest the mountain opened for the first day of the season happened on the same date in three different years: November 15, 2024, 2019, and 2013.
• The lastest date the mountain has closed for the season was May 5, 2018.
• The biggest year for snowfall in the past 20 years was the 2016-2017 season during which 281 inches of total natural accumulation was measured.
• Though Whiteface is known for shorter lift lines than other mountains, we have seen a rise in skiers and riders in recent years. The single busiest day on the mountain was February 18, 2018 when 6,439 people skied or rode the trails.

A few of the many athletes who have trained at Whiteface Mountain:

Andrew Weibrecht, Alpine Skiing – Two-time Olympic medalist (silver and bronze)

Tommy Biesemeyer, Alpine Skiing – 2018 Olympian from Keene, NY

Mikaela Shiffrin, Alpine Skiing – Olympian and World Cup Win Record Holder

Ingmar Stenmark, Alpine Skiing – Double Gold Medalist (slalom and giant slalom) at the 1980 Games in Lake Placid

Whiteface Castle and the Whiteface Mountain Veterans Memorial Highway were both first conceived of and initiated prior to the Great Depression. Saranac Lake resident Marcellus A. Leonard was an early proponent for their construction. In 1929, then Governor of New York State, Franklin D. Roosevelt commissioned the Whiteface Veteran’s Memorial Highway be built to a location just below the summit to honor the veterans of World War I, and in September 1929, Roosevelt turned the first spade of earth in an official ground-breaking ceremony.

The highway was declared open on July 20, 1935. Roosevelt returned on September 14, 1935, as US President to dedicate the highway a memorial to the New York State Veterans of the Great War (WWI). Unfortunately, Leonard died six months before the opening of the roadway and never saw the project completed. Despite the fact the timing of the project led to a widespread belief that they were Depression-era public works projects arising from the New Deal, both these projects were entirely funded by the State of New York.

Whiteface Mountain is the fifth largest peak in the Adirondack Mountain range and it’s the only mountain in the Adirondacks that offers accessibility by vehicle. The highway begins in the nearby town of Wilmington from which it climbs eight miles, with the first approximately three miles being free-of-charge. A toll building resembling a Swiss Chalet marks the beginning of the toll road. After approximately five miles and over 2000 feet in elevation gain from the toll building, the highway ends at a two-story castle built with granite excavated from the highway construction.

The Highway provides access to within 92 vertical meters of the summit observatory. A 0.2-mile trail with handrail installed into the mountain’s hard rock surface assists foot traffic to the summit. Additionally, a tunnel carved deep into the mountain’s core from the parking area provides elevator access to the summit, making this the only Adirondack summit accessible by wheelchair.  The tunnel and elevator were recommendations made by FDR to afford visitors greater access to the many splendors of the site.

Today, from mid-May to early-October, visitors to the area can take a drive or cycle up the five-mile-long scenic highway from the toll booth to the top. Along the way there are scenic lookout points and picnic areas where visitors can stop and enjoy views of the Adirondack region.

The Summit Area is above the tree line, providing visitors a 360-degree panoramic view of the surrounding wilderness and the Adirondack High Peaks. Lake Champlain, the Green Mountains of Vermont, and Canada to the north are also visible on a clear day.

In recent years and along with other improvements to legacy venues, the New York State Olympic Regional Development Authority invested in upgrades to the road. They included improved grading and shoulders, better drainage, and new pavement. The Olympic Authority also made renovations to the Castle to ensure the longevity of this historic, high-elevation structure and to provide an improved experience for guests at its restaurant and gift shop.

Overall, the experience of the Whiteface Mountain’s Veterans Memorial Highway is a unique and extraordinarily memorable one.

The Adirondack High Peaks are a naturally beautiful and rugged winter paradise. It’s a perfect setting for winter sports. Yet the village of Lake Placid would never have become the world-renowned destination it is today without a compelling vision for the future. A vision others didn’t have. That’s the essence of great leadership, and it is the catalyst that throughout the 20^th Century endured to forge Lake Placid’s Olympic legacy.

Today, great leadership is bound together with a keen understanding of responsibility, and the two together are once again lifting the Olympic Region to an enviable position on the world stage. New York State’s Olympic Regional Development Authority completed a massive and far-reaching series of projects from 2017 through 2022, ushering in a bold new era of excellence in winter sport, recreation, and tourism.

Lake Placid’s legacy is born of Olympic glory, and it and burns brilliantly yet today. The Olympic Regional Development Authority remains devoted to training athletes at all levels, to recreation in all seasons, and to hosting a broad spectrum of national and international events.

Today, each of the Lake Placid Legacy Sites have been expanded and modernized, setting the bar for sports competition and recreation:

• Whiteface Mountain’s awe-inspiring ski and snowboard facilities
• Mt Van Hoevenberg’s powerful combination of Nordic and sliding sports installations
• The newly rejuvenated Olympic Jumping Complex, the only facility in North America homologated for summer and winter competition
• The all-new Olympic Center in downtown Lake Placid with the 1980 Herb Brooks Arena, its 1932 Jack Shea Arena, James C. Sheffield Speed Skating Oval, and the Lake Placid Olympic Museum

The effort has been massive. The investment game changing. The difference revolutionary. Excitement is palpable among staff, athletes, visitors, and the Region’s communities. This is an Olympic Village renaissance that will make a difference in endless ways in the lives of multitudes of people for decades to come.