No kick-off in Sölden

Norway now wants a Ski World Cup revolution

The start of the new ski season would no longer take place in Sölden.

(Bild: Jasmin Steiner)

Before the FIS publishes the race calendar for the new Ski World Cup season, the Norwegian Ski Association, together with an auditing company, has developed a new concept. It is intended to make the World Cup more sustainable and turn the race calendar on its head.

Under the motto "Change the Course", the Norwegian Ski Association "Skiforbundet" and the auditing firm KPMG have developed a new concept with which they want to make skiing more sustainable overall and thus secure its future.

This would have an impact on the race calendar in particular. According to the Norwegians, this should be divided into four different blocks in future. These will be based on the geographical location of the World Cup venues. The World Cup opener would no longer take place in Sölden, but in the USA at the end of November.

Reliable races, fewer emissions
Background: The pre-season preparations usually take place in South America. If the season starts in North America, travel emissions could be significantly reduced. After the races overseas, the ski circus would move to Europe.

Here, the races would again be divided into different blocks based on the natural snow conditions. In mid-March, the races would therefore go to Scandinavia. "Emissions could be reduced in this way, as the overall need for artificial snow would be reduced. The organizers could avoid dates with poor conditions and hold competitions in more reliable snow conditions," the concept states.