Olympics-Athletes test Cortina sliding track ahead of 2026 Games

CORTINA D'AMPEZZO, Italy (Reuters) -A group of Olympic athletes got their first chance on Tuesday to test the track at the new sliding centre that will host events at the Winter Games next year as a project that has caused controversy nears completion.

The Eugenio Monti centre in the Alpine resort of Cortina d'Ampezzo has been rebuilt at a cost of 118 million euros ($128 million) and will stage bobsleigh, skeleton and luge events during the Games next February.

The venue has been on a tight deadline after Italy opted to build a new facility instead of using an existing one in one of several neighbouring countries.

"When everyone told me that we would not succeed, I had no doubts, but I felt a great responsibility," Italian Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini said at the venue.

"I must say that we have made up for the delays we inherited," he added. "For Italy it is a great opportunity to show the world what we are."

Named after an Italian former bobsleigh champion, the centre replaces one originally built in the 1920s and the work has been done in just over a year.

Italian luger Dominik Fischnaller, a bronze medallist at the 2022 Games, and Austrian Lisa Schulte, who also competes in luge, were among the first to take to the track on Tuesday.

Although the track is ready for athletes to test its specifications and for safety checks, work remains to be done to finalise its surroundings at the venue.

The track itself is also protected by temporary white tarpaulins held up by wooden supports.

Initial or 'pre-homologation' testing will be held all week in the three disciplines, with 60 athletes taking part, including those from host Italy and 11 other nations.

Eyebrows were raised when it emerged that Lake Placid in New York state had been designated as a long-distance backup solution should things go wrong in Cortina.

Cortina and Italy's biggest northern city of Milan, more than 400 kilometres (250 miles) away, are the main hosts of the Games which will run from February 6-22.

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(Reporting by Claudia GrecoWriting by Keith WeirEditing by Christian Radnedge)