WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — The Bay State Games are set to host the 35th annual Winter Games in the Berkshires in 2020. 

 

The Bay State Winter Games have been held in the Berkshire region each year since 1985 except for one year because of funding. The Winter Games expects to attract hundreds of athletes and families to the Berkshire region to compete in sports like figure skating and masters ice hockey.

 

The 2020 Figure Skating competition will take place Jan. 3-5, 2020, at Williams College. This is the earliest the competition has ever been held in Bay State Games history. This competition will feature more than 400 skaters from Massachusetts, Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island. Skaters ranging in age from 5 to older than 65 represent the U.S. Figure Skating Association or the International Skating Institute.

 

Highlights for this upcoming competition include the reinstatement of the Bay State Skate Show on Saturday, Jan. 4. Gold medalists from certain events will skate in this exhibition show. The figure skating competition will begin on Friday evening with the short programs. This event will also serve as a qualifier for the 2021 State Games of America to be held in Ames and Des Moines, Iowa. All medal winners will receive an invitation to compete at the 2021 State Games of America.

 

"We are thrilled to be hosting the Bay State Games again in 2020," says Sue Briggs, executive director of the Williamstown Chamber of Commerce. "The games bring an incredible group of up-and-coming athletes from all over Massachusetts, to our small corner of the state. We look forward to welcoming them and their families into our community in January."

 

Masters Ice Hockey will take place Feb. 28 to March 1, 2020 in North Adams at the Peter W. Foote Vietnam Veterans Memorial Skating Rink. Bay State Games is expecting eight to 10 teams to register with the tournament, some of whom have participated in every Bay State Winter Games thus far.

 

Registration for both figure skating and masters ice hockey is ongoing. For more details and links to online registration, go to www.baystategames.org. For questions, contact info@baystategames.org or 781-932-6555.