🔗 Share this article

Put aside poor conditions. Currently, there’s no ice.

With NHL players preparing to make a comeback to the Olympic Games for the first time in more than a ten years, construction on the main hockey arena for the Milano Cortina Games is going down to the wire.

Local organizers confirmed on Wednesday that the primary trial competition for the 16,000-capacity Santagiulia facility that was scheduled for December has been relocated to a smaller venue – and that no additional trial has been arranged yet.

The issue raises the prospect that there may not be a match held in the primary venue until the competition begins for the women's initial games at the Olympics on 5 February – one day before the opening ceremony.

“It’s going to be very close to the start of the Olympics, the timeline is very tight. But we knew that,” Milan-Cortina local organizing committee CEO Andrea Varnier said in a recent update.

The competition that was supposed to test the Santagiulia ice was a segment of the under-20 world championship from 8-14 December. That event has been transferred to the Rho Fiera hockey venue, which is being established inside a giant exhibition hall on the outskirts of Milan and will host secondary matches during the Olympics.

Usually, freshly built Olympic facilities are trialled at least the year before to holding medal events. And with a sizable hockey venue, it’s not only about the ice and ensuring that the playing surface is ready and secure. It’s also about testing food outlets, restrooms and all other amenities inside a brand-new modern arena.

The Santagiulia venue, which is being built by a commercial firm, is scheduled to become the nation's largest covered stadium. Following the Olympics, it’s being considered as a potential upcoming venue of the ATP Tour Finals tennis tournament.

In spite of the postponements and worries, high-priced passes are already being sold for matches at the Santagiulia arena. Seats for the men’s gold medal final on 22 February – the closing day of the games – are going for as much as €1,400 (over $1,600). This exceeds the price of any other sports event at the Milan-Cortina Games. Solely tickets for the opening and closing ceremonies are priced higher.

The comeback of NHL stars at the Olympics was announced in February of last year, with the world’s top hockey organization allowing its athletes to participate in the Winter Games for the first time since 2014 in Sochi.

The men’s Olympic hockey tournament is set to run from 11-22 February. Women's tournament runs from 5-19 February.