LAKE PLACID – This tiny two-time Olympic village will be the center of the sliding world when the FIBT Bobsleigh and Skeleton World Championships take place Feb. 13 to 26.

Athletes from more than 20 nations are expected to compete on the 1,455-meter long Olympic course in men’s two and four man bobsled, women’s bobsled and men’s and women’s skeleton, including the reigning four-man Olympic bobsled champion Steve Holcomb of the United States. Holcomb rode his 2009 world championship victory in Lake Placid into the 2010 Olympic Winter Games, in Vancouver, Canada, where he became the first American bobsled pilot to win an Olympic gold medal in more than 60 years.

Many of the athletes competing this time around are also hoping that the momentum gained at the world championships will carry over to the 2014 winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia.

Racing begins on Friday, Feb. 17, at 9:30 a.m. with the opening two runs of the women’s bobsled race. The women’s world champion will be crowned under the lights, Saturday night when runs three and four begin at 5 p.m. Saturday also features runs one and two of the two-man bobsled competition, beginning at 9 a.m.

Sunday’s schedule will feature the crowning of the two-man world champion when racing begins at 9 a.m. and the team competition. The team event will feature at least 10 nations competing in men’s and women’s skeleton, men’s two-man bobsled and women’s bobsled, all racing for the lowest combined time.

Racing will resume, Thursday, Feb. 23, when the world’s best women’s skeleton athletes take to the 22-curve track at 9:40 a.m. They will take two runs before a world champion is crowned on Friday, Feb. 24, when racing begins at 9:45 a.m. The men will also race Friday, starting at 5 p.m.

Saturday’s schedule features four-man bobsled action, with heats one and two beginning at 9 a.m., before the men’s skeleton action resumes with its final two runs at 5 p.m. Finally, the World Championships will conclude Sunday with the third and fourth runs of the four-man race, beginning at 9:20 a.m.

Public skeleton rides are scheduled for Monday, Feb. 20, through Thursday, Feb. 23, from 5:30-7 p.m., and on Friday, Feb. 24, from 1-2 p.m. Reservations are required. To reserve a spot, call (518) 523.4436 or e-mail oscreservations@orda.org.

A fireworks display at the track will light up night sky Saturday night, Feb. 18 beginning at 8:45 p.m., following the women’s bobsled award ceremony and the public draw for the team event. Fireworks are also slated for Saturday, Feb. 25, also beginning at 8:45 p.m.

A World Championship Concert takes place Sunday night, Feb. 19, inside the Conference Center at Lake Placid. The doors open at 6 p.m., with Roadside Mystic playing at 7 p.m., followed by the awards ceremony for the men’s two-man event and team competition. The music will continue at 8:30 when Assembly of Dust takes the stage. Tickets are just $20 for Sunday’s party.

Tickets are on sale now for the 2012 FIBT Bobsleigh and Skeleton World championships. Single day tickets are $15 for adults and $9 for seniors and juniors. Tickets to see all seven days of competition are $50 for adults and $35 for juniors and seniors. Tickets are available on line at http://purchase.tickets.com/buy/TicketPurchase?organ_val=2439, through the Olympic Center’s box office at 2634 Main St., or at the Olympic Sports Complex box office.

For more information about this event and all of the events at ORDA’s Olympic venues, log on www.whitefacelakeplacid.com.