Built from November 1993 and handed over in April 1996 for the 1998 Nagano Winter Olympics, the Spiral has two uphill sections, a world first by its organisers' account. After the Games it hosted the skeleton World Championships in 2003 and the luge World Championships in 2004. Ice-making stopped in February 2018, after its yearly budget had been cut from about 220 million to 20 million yen and its equipment had worn out. Hopes of reusing it ended with the collapse of Sapporo's 2030 bid.
- Its organisers called it the first track in the world with two uphill sections.
- Its yearly budget was cut by about 90%, from roughly 220 million to 20 million yen.
- Its refrigeration, lighting and scoreboard all needed replacing when the ice stopped.
Today
The track still stands with its cooling fluid drained; the city keeps it as a national training centre.
See the place on OpenStreetMap