Olympians Train in Flagstaff

Yes, Flagstaff, Arizona is a popular location for Olympic athletes to train. Flagstaff’s high altitude and mild climate make it an ideal location for athletes to train and prepare for international competitions, including the Olympics. The city has a number of training facilities, including the High Altitude Train Center, which is located at Northern Arizona University.

Several Olympians from a variety of sports have trained in Flagstaff, including marathoner Deena Kastor, long-distance runner Bernard Lagat, and cyclist Kristin Armstrong. The U.S. Olympic marathon team has also held training camps in Flagstaff, and the city has hosted a number of Olympic Trials events, including the 2020 U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials.

Now it’s drawing international athletes as they begin training for the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics.

NAU’s pool has been packed with swimmers from across the world, including Germany, Australia, China, and Hector Pardoe from the United Kingdom. He is competing in Paris this summer as an open-water swimmer in his second Olympics.

Pardoe is one of the many Olympians in Flagstaff training at 7,000 feet for weeks. However, going from sea level to 7,000 feet has its challenges. Altitude training can be an uncomfortable adjustment, but when athletes return to close to sea level, they can really shine.

What makes Flagstaff the ideal training destination?

In a nutshell, successful training camps are often about the big picture rather than any one thing. This means a combination of elements, rather than any one particular element. In Flagstaff, you have an incredibly unique combination of training camp components that make it, in terms of an altitude training site, second to none anywhere in the world:

• Physiologically ideal altitude of 7,000 feet where the desired physiological adaptations from altitude training (increases in erythropoietin production, red blood cell mass, total blood volume to move oxygen more efficiently through the bloodstream, etc.) can occur.
• Very high-quality training venues (sprinkled around the city and centered around Northern Arizona University).
• World-class performance-related services (courtesy of HYPO2 and its experienced high-performance management team).
• World-class extracurricular activities and diversions (such as the Grand Canyon) that attract millions from all over the world.
• All the advantages that come with being based in an actual city at altitude (such as restaurants, museums, observatories, Route 66 attractions, etc.), rather than training in other, typically remote altitude training sites. 
• Extremely strong sport culture, in which athletes achieve easy integration into a city that is used to seeing and supporting elite athletes in training.

International athletes and visitors also enjoy coming to northern Arizona for the sights and activities the area offers, including Sunset Crater, Wupatki National Monument, the Grand Canyon, Sedona, and many more. Just one more reason that it’s great to be in Flagstaff!

Next time you’re in downtown Flagstaff, stop by our office to learn more about the area, and the housing market! We always have a real live Realtor® on duty in the office during office hours to answer any questions you may have.