Buffalo/Rochester Area Empire State Winter Games Torch Relay Stops Include Waterloo, Lockport, Orchard Park, Gowanda, Amherst & Victor
Empire State Winter Games to be Held in New York State’s Adirondack Region January 30 thru February 2, 2025
Empire State Winter Games Opening Ceremony Entitled “Chasing Dreams on Snow & Ice” Scheduled for 6:30 p.m., January 30 in Lake Placid’s Olympic Center
Twenty-Four Winter Sports Make up the 45th Annual Empire State Winter Games
BUFFALO, N.Y. (JANU ARY 20, 2025) — The 45th Empire State Winter Games (ESWG) Torch Relay is scheduled to kick off its tour through New York State in the Buffalo, N.Y. region Thursday, Jan. 23, Friday, Jan. 24, and Saturday, Jan. 25. The stops are the first of 16 that will carry the torch over 700 miles to its final destination, Lake Placid, N.Y, in time for the ESWG’s Opening Ceremony, Jan. 30, at 6:30 p.m. being held in the famed Olympic Center’s 1980 Herb Brooks Arena.
With title sponsor Community Bank, N.A., along with supporting sponsors Highmark Blue Shield of Northeastern New York, DICK’s Sporting Goods, Bond, Schoeneck & King PLLC, Stewart Shops, Don’s Ford of Utica and Golden Arrow Lakeside Resort, the relay which symbolizes a unifying spirit, inspiration, resilience and the power of sport and community, will be welcomed by dozens of communities along the route back to Lake Placid.
Here’s where it will be in your area on January 23-25, 2025. Times may be subject to change due to weather.
January 23, 2025
Waterloo Community Bank; 2 W Main St, Waterloo, N.Y. 13165, 2 p.m. On-site contact: Alexis Hobart, Alexis.Hobart@cbna.com, Tel: (315) 539-9261.
Torch relay from 46 West Main Street to 2 West Main Street. The torch will be accepted by bank employees, area officials and dignitaries.
Cornerstone Arena/Buffalo Skating Club; 34 Chestnut Street Lockport, NY 14094, 5:45 p.m. On-site contact: Dawn Ahlers, Dahlers@cornerstoneicearena.com, Tel: (716) 860-6775.
Members of the Buffalo Skating Club will skate with the torch and pose for pictures.
January 24, 2025
Gowanda Schools; 10675 Prospect St, Gowanda, N.Y. 14070, 8:30 a.m. On-site contact: Dave Bolen, mrbolen@gcslearn.org, Tel: 716-462-3239.
Members of the Gowanda High School cross country team will carry the torch through the high school, middle school and elementary school en route to the Gowanda Community Bank where it will be received by bank employees, area dignitaries and officials.
Buffalo Bills Highmark Stadium; 1 Bills Dr, Orchard Park, N.Y. 14127, 10 a.m. On-site contact: Maureen Hanagan, maureen.hanagan@highmark.com, Tel: 716-909-4454.
During this event, Orchard Park High School students, local hockey team members, and athletes participating in the 2025 Empire State Winter Games will carry the torch to the stadium. It will be met by representatives from Highmark Blue Shield of Western New York, local and regional representatives and dignitaries.
Orchard Park Community Bank; 5 Clark Road, Orchard Park, NY 14127. On-site contact: Amy Lindquist, Amy.Lindquist@cbna.com, Tel: 716-539-5285.
During this event, Roost Running Club Runners will carry the torch from St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, 6595 E. Quaker St. to 5 Clark St., down Porter Street to the community Bank location, 5 Clark Street, where it will be accepted by bank employees, area officials and dignitaries.
January 25, 2025
The Northtown Center/Amherst Skating Club; 1615 Amherst Manor Dr, Williamsville, NY 14221, 10 a.m. On-site contact: Rob Muzz, rmuzz@protonmail.com, Tel: 716-228-4573.
Members of the Amherst Skating Club will skate with the torch and pose for pictures.
DICK’s House of Sport; 200 Eastview Mall Victor, N.Y. 14564, 4 p.m. On-site Contact: Taylor Cicoria, Taylor.Cicoria@dcsg.com, Tel: 412-627-6391.
During this event, DICK’s Sporting Goods employees, local Empire State Winter Games athletes, members of the Empire State Winter Games Organizing Committee and regional representatives and dignitaries will carry the torch through the Eastview Mall, where it will also be skated around the mall’s indoor skating rink.
Additional 2025 Empire State Winter Games Torch Relay stops include: DICK’s Sporting Goods, in Clay, Jan. 26; Syracuse Community Bank, Jan. 27; Canton Community Bank, Jan. 28; Delmar Community Bank, Bond Schoneck & King, in Albany and Latham’s Highmark Blue Shield of Northeastern New York, Jan. 29; and Community Bank branches in Tupper Lake, Saranac Lake and Lake Placid, Jan. 30.
The 45th annual ESWG is the largest and longest continuous amateur, winter multi-sport event in the United States. This winter’s event is expected to attract winter athletes from ages eight to 80 who will compete in 24 winter sports, including sliding sports, figure skating, sled hockey, winter biking and more. In addition to Lake Placid, Tupper Lake, Saranac Lake, Paul Smiths and Wilmington will also host events.
The Games officially kick off on Thursday, Jan. 30, 6:30 p.m., when more than 2,500 athletes participate in Opening Ceremony being held in the Olympic Center’s 1980 Herb Brooks Arena. This year’s ESWG event theme is “Chasing Dreams on Snow & Ice: The 2025 Empire State Winter Games.” The event, which is free and open to the public, aims to celebrate the inspirational journey of all the athletes who have competed in the 44-year history of the Games.
For more information about the 45th Empire State Winter Games, go to https://empirestatewintergames.com/.
Fans and athletes can also follow on Facebook, Instagram and X, formerly known as Twitter, using @ESWGames and #ESWGames.