Report: Lake Placid Empire State Games canceled

According to a Poughkeepsie newspaper, the Empire State Games program, including the February 2011 games slated for Lake Placid, has been defunded.

The Poughkeepsie Journal quotes one of the program’s administrators at length:

“It is with great regret and sadness that I must inform you of the cancellation of the 2011 Empire State Games programs,” Winter Games administrator Lisa Del Signore wrote in a letter to ESG officials and athletes obtained by the Poughkeepsie Journal.

“We have been informed that there will be no appropriation for any of the Empire State Games programs in the coming year, and two of our five staff members have been laid off effective the end of the year. The other three have been re-assigned within the State Parks agency. With no money and no staff, we have no program.

“Perhaps in the future the economic climate will improve and the Games will experience a rebirth. For now I thank you for all your hard work, your dedication and support.”

Tags: adirondacks, economy, sports