For the Winter Olympics, there are nine venues that have been used for short track speed skating. The 1988 events were held at the same venue with the curling events though both were demonstration events. Since then, the short track speed skating events have been held with the figure skating events.
Games | Venue | Other sports hosted at venue for those games | Capacity | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
1988 Calgary | Max Bell Arena (demonstration) | Curling (demonstration) | 3,200 | [1] |
1992 Albertville | La halle de glace Olympique | Figure skating | 9,000 | [2] |
1994 Lillehammer | Hamar Olympic Amphitheatre | Figure skating | 6,000 | [3] |
1998 Nagano | White Ring | Figure skating | 7,351 | [4] |
2002 Salt Lake City | Salt Lake Ice Center | Figure skating | 17,500 | [5] |
2006 Turin | Palavela | Figure skating | 8,000 | [6] |
2010 Vancouver | Pacific Coliseum | Figure skating | 14,239 | [7] |
2014 Sochi | Iceberg Skating Palace | Figure skating | 12,000 | [8] |
2018 PyeongChang | Gangneung Ice Arena | Figure skating | 12,000 | [9] |
2022 Beijing | Capital Indoor Stadium | Figure skating | 15,000 | |
2026 Milano - Cortina d'Ampezzo | Mediolanum Forum | Figure skating | 12,000 |
For the 1968 Winter Olympics in Grenoble, France, a total of ten sports venues were used. Most venues were constructed between the 1964 Winter Games in Innsbruck and the 1968 Games. Thawing was an issue for the four-man bobsleigh run. They were limited to only two runs. Thawing also affected the men's 500 m speed skating event. Electronic timing in alpine skiing affected the results of the women's giant slalom event. It gave Canada's Nancy Greene a headache for two days despite her gold medal in the event.
For the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, New York, United States, a total of seven sports venues were used. All five of the venues used for the 1932 Winter Olympics were also used at the 1980 Winter Games with adjustments. These adjustments included electronic scoreboards, increased refrigeration, and the addition of a separate luge track. This was the last Winter Olympics where there were separate bobsleigh and luge tracks. The closest finish in Olympic history in cross-country skiing led skiing officials to time future events in hundredths of a second rather than tenths of a second. This would also apply to biathlon events. Eric Heiden won five gold medals at the speed skating oval while the "Miracle on Ice" took place between Americans and Soviets at the Olympic Center. In the late 1990s, the luge track was demolished and a new combination track was constructed in time for the only Winter Goodwill Games held. The sliding venue was named to the American National Register of Historical Places in February 2010.
For the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan, a total of fifteen sports venues were used. Nagano had attempted twice to host the Winter Olympics, losing out to Sapporo, host of the 1972 Winter Olympics. The third time, in 1991, Nagano edged out Salt Lake City to host the 1998 Games. The biathlon venue was adjusted in accordance with the Washington Convention over endangered species. The biggest venue controversy was at Happo'one resort on the length of the men's downhill and the battle that ensued to the point where skiing officials threatened to pull the event entirely before a compromise was reached three months before the Olympics. M-Wave has hosted three World Speed Skating Championships since the Olympics, while the Spiral has hosted a couple of world championships in bobsleigh, luge and skeleton.