The Olympic Sliding Centre () is a bobsleigh, luge, and skeleton track that is located in Daegwallyeong, Pyeongchang, South Korea. The centre is located between the Alpensia and Yongpyong Resort. The venue is one of only two operating sliding facilities in Asia, along with the Spiral in Japan.
It was renamed from Alpensia Sliding Centre to Olympic Sliding Centre in June 2017.
Championships hosted 2016–2017 Luge, Skeleton, and Bobsleigh World Cups 2018 Olympic Luge, Skeleton, and Bobsleigh
Track technical details Construction The venue was built by Daelim under the responsibility of the Gangwon Province. The construction cost (about ), to be shared between the country and the regional authorities: National Government , Local Government .The Groundbreaking Ceremony of the Olympic Sliding Center for the Success of the PyeongChang Winter Olympics 2018 - SportsFeatures.com - 10 March 2014
The construction of the Alpensia Sliding Centre started in March 2014 and was completed in the final months of 2017.Groundbreaking Ceremony held for PyeongChang 2018 Sliding Centre - International Olympic Committee - 11 March 2014
Characteristics It occupies a surface of , and has a range in altitude from above sea level at the top of the track down to above sea level at finish line. The track itself is long (to commemorate the Olympics), and is wide. The venue can also hold 7,000 attendants, with 1,000 seats and standing room for the remaining 6,000.
2018 Winter Olympics During coverage of the Games on NBC Sports in the United States, the track was referred to as "The House of Speed" while turns 9-12 were referred to as "Run Breaker" for the fact they slowed down the sleds so much that it costs sliders positions, including medals. The best known example was Germany's Felix Loch who was leading after three runs in the luge men's singles event only to have problems during the final run through "Run Breaker", causing the two-time defending Olympic champion to finish 5th.
Turn 2 was named 'Soju' by sliders, after the local Korean liquor, because "it messes you up."
During the Games, the Turn 9-10-11 sequence was christened the name "The Dragon's Tail". Tweak the Dragon's Tail and you'll pay the price. Other Dragon-based names appeared in the Downhill and Slalom courses, reflecting the importance of the Dragon in Korean mythology.
Turn 14 was named The Olympic Curve - inspired by the PyeongChang 2018 logo, set in the ice.
Track Records
+Track records Event Record Athlete(s) Date Time () Bobsleigh Two-man Start 18 February 2018 4.85 Track 19 February 2018 48.96 Four-man Start 25 February 2018 4.80 Track 24 February 2018 48.54 Two-woman Start 20 February 2018 5.21 Track 21 February 2018 50.46 Skeleton Men's Start 15 February 2018 4.59 Track 16 February 2018 50.02 Women's Start 17 March 2017 4.92 Track 17 February 2018 51.46 Luge Men's Singles Start 10 February 2018 2.545 Track 11 February 2018 47.475 Women's Singles Start 12 February 2018 4.302 Track 12 February 2018 46.132 Men's Doubles Start 14 February 2018 4.174 Track 14 February 2018 45.820
References