A 400 m double-track oval built for the 1998 Nagano Olympics, open to the public each autumn and winter
M-Wave, officially the Nagano Olympic Memorial Arena, was built for the speed skating of the 1998 Nagano Olympics, with work starting in March 1994 and the building completed on 1 November 1996 at a cost of 34.8 billion yen. It also hosted the 2002 World Figure Skating Championships and holds up to 18,000 people.
From autumn to winter it works as an indoor skating rink: the first indoor 400 metre standard double track in Japan recognised by the International Skating Union. The city owns it and a company backed by the city, the prefecture and private investors runs it. It is a national training centre for speed skating.
The public season runs from early October to early March. A snack corner opens on weekends and holidays, and public skating stops during competitions such as the national distance championships in October.
Admission, rentals and arrival details, researched from official rink information. Source checks stay current for 30 days.
A skating ticket is ¥1,560 on weekends and holidays and ¥830 on weekdays for people over junior high school age, and skating is free for junior high school students and younger; hire skates are ¥620. Skaters with a disability certificate pay ¥780 or ¥410.
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Hire skates come in figure sizes from 15 to 31 cm, speed sizes from 19 to 30 cm and hockey sizes from 22 to 30 cm.
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Discounted advance tickets for skating and for hire skates can be bought at the multimedia terminals of Seven-Eleven, FamilyMart and Lawson stores.
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Helmets are lent free of charge at the skate-hire counter in sizes S, M and L.
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Visitors are asked to use the south car park first and the west car park when it is full.
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Skaters with a disability certificate pay half price for skating, ¥780 on weekends and holidays and ¥410 on weekdays.
Source checked · · Official source
A source check records what the rink published on that date. Session-specific booking details take precedence.
