Responsible for three of Whistler's 2010 Olympic & Paralympic Winter Games Venues: the Whistler Sliding Centre, Whistler Olympic Park, and the Whistler Athletes' Centre.
Facilities
Whistler Sliding Centre was created for the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Games and is fortunate to now have a world class training and competition venue. You will undoubtedly see top class and aspiring athletes training or competing at the Olympic sport facility. Local and national sport organizations are developing Skeleton, Bobsleigh and Luge athletes using the Whistler Sliding Centre. For more information or to get involved in sport programs at Whistler Sliding Centre please contact us.
The Track
The Whistler Sliding Centre is home to the fastest sliding track in the world.
- Track construction began in June 2005 and was completed for the winter 2007-08.
- 1 of only 15 international competition sliding tracks in the world.
- The track is 1,450 meters in length and has 7 starting points along the way down.
- It consists of 16 curves and 152 meters in elevation drop, the steepest in the world.
- A thin, two to five centimeter ice surface is produced and maintained by hand
- Bobsleigh athletes will travel at speeds near 150 km per hour with 5 G’s of force on some of the corners.
- Luge athletes speed around the corners reaching as much as 5 G’s of force while lying on there back.
- Skeleton athletes will travel at speeds near 100 km per hour head first!
Guest Services
The beautiful Guest Services building is where you'll find friendly staff to help you make the most of your winter and summer experiences.
Services available include:
- Public Skeleton and Bobsleigh tours sales
- Seasonal Merchandise
- Interpretive self guided signage walk
- Surrounded by large windows with mountain views for plenty of light
- Meeting room or venue rentals
- Change facilities and washrooms
- Free Parking
Top Start House
Located at the top of the track, this building is the starting and warm up area for athletes prior to their race.
- It is an open room and ideal for intimate meetings and corporate groups.
- There are two beautiful deck areas outside the start house which have stunning views and are perfect for outdoor and tented events with a beautiful waterfall backdrop in the summer months.
Control Timing Building
The hub of all athletic competitions at the Whistler Sliding Centre.
- Control and Timing is the centre for safety, communication, and timing for all activities on the Track.
- From this location 34 CCTV cameras are monitored during each descent to ensure only one sled is in track at any given time.
- The Control and Timing utilizes public address, intercom and two-way radio systems to ensure that athletes, track crew, officials and spectators are kept informed about the status of a sled during a run.
- Timing is carried out electronically with the use of permanent photo electric light beams placed the length of the Track.
- Specialized computer software processes impulses to obtain speeds and produce results.
Track Operations
The brains behind all operations at the Whistler Sliding Centre.
The track operations building in the control centre for the day to day operations of the Whistler Sliding Centre. From maintenance of track equipment to race planning, it all happens here.
Finish Building
The hub of the action during race events.
- At the end of the Outrun you will see the Finish Dock. This is where the sleds come to a stop and exit the Track.
- Location where race officials check athlete and sleds for rule infractions.
- The public sliding tours finish here as well giving the guest the perfect finishing experience.
- There is an inside warming area for the athlete and public to wait for results.
- A large scale is built into the dock for checking the combined weight of bobsleigh and crew to ensure they meet the specific weight requirements during race events.
- A scoreboard and track times are also displayed so the Athletes can view there rankings during the race.
- Intercom systems are located outside the Finish Dock to assist race officials in communication with track crews.
Refrigeration Plant
Making sliding at the Whistler Sliding Centre possible.
- The refrigeration plant covers over 100km of refrigeration piping
- It has 4 compressors that pump out 2100hp at its maximum capacity.
- The plant is a state of the art facility and has a Direct Digital Control System which enables operators to make adjustments to set points via a computer.
- The refrigeration plant building obtained LEEDS Gold standard from the “Canada Green Building Council”.
- When the plant is running it re-uses heat from the compressors to help with the heating in the Guest Services building.
- It is one of the largest refrigeration plants in Canada.
Updates
Sport, Outdoor & Fun! This summer the new 5-day...
The Whistler Sliding Centre is now closed for Spring and...
Top Canadian Luger Alex Gough wrapped up her World Cup...
The Whistler Sliding Centre now has a blog!
See it Here...