Continued hosting of major events
Prior to Lillehammer 1994, hardly any major international sporting events took place in the region. In the years after the Olympic Games, World Cups and World Championships became regular fixtures in Lillehammer.
After the development of world-class facilities for the Olympic Games Lillehammer 1994, thanks to Lillehammer’s legacy strategy it was possible to continue using the venues built for 1994 to host major sports and non-sports leisure events. No other previous organiser of the Olympic Winter Games has seen such activity in the years after the Games.
All 10 of the venues new for 1994 remain in active use. Between the opening of the Games and the summer of 2018, these venues staged 32 World and European Championships or international tournaments, 129 World Cup events and 161 National Cups.
Mass sports events, such as the cross-country Birkebeinerrittet race, attract up to 10,000 participants to Lillehammer, as do the Inga Lami women-only cross-country event and the Birkebeinerrittet off-road bicycle race.
The venues also host concerts, exhibitions, trade fairs and smaller festivals. These leisure events tend to be more economically beneficial than prestigious sporting events.
The strategy of hosting major events has helped maintain the status of Lillehammer as a centre for recreational, national and international sports. It also has a positive, although not major, impact on tourism.
Lillehammer’s enduring Olympic legacy was clearly visible when the city hosted the 2016 Winter Youth Olympic Games.