Ski & snow news

The 47th International Ski Congress in Antalya (TUR) was the centennial International Ski Congress, taking place 100 years after the very first International Ski Congress which was held on 18th February 1910 in Christiania (later known as Oslo), Norway. The delegates at the 2010 FIS Congress were conscious of the importance of their decisions for the future direction and development of the international ski sports which now embark on their second century.
Delegates at the FIS Congress decided to advance four events (ski halfpipe, women’s ski jumping, and snowboarding slopestyle and team snowboardcross) toward possible inclusion in the 2014 Sochi Olympics.
The Congress unanimously supported the proposal to submit a request to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to include Freestyle half-pipe on the program of the Olympic Winter Games Freestyle half-pipe has been part of the FIS Freestyle Skiing World Championships since 2005. FIS will now propose Freestyle half-pipe together with ladies' Ski Jumping and the Alpine Nations' Team Event, which will - as per a decision of the FIS Congress 2006 in Vilamoura (POR) - be resubmitted to the IOC.
Snowboard slopestyle and team snowboard cross were also unanimously adopted on the program of the FIS Snowboard World Championships, whilst the submission of slopestyle to the IOC was also discussed.
A multi-stage competition in Cross-Country Skiing, similar to the annual FIS Tour de Ski, was accepted to be carried out as a World Championship, to take place every four years. The first edition will take place as soon as the organizational aspects are clarified (2012 or 2016).
The slalom and giant slalom competitions at the FIS Alpine World Ski Championships will feature 60 starters in the 2nd run after a closely contested vote. A maximum of 100 starters with all entered nations represented may participate in the first run after a qualification race.

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The official debriefing of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games will get underway next week in the future Olympic winter host city of Sochi. Organised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), the debrief will see the staff of the Vancouver 2010 Organising Committee (VANOC) sharing their knowledge and experience with representatives from London 2012, Sochi 2014, Rio 2016 and the three applicant cities for the Games in 2018 (Annecy, Munich and PyeongChang). This, its sixth edition, will continue the IOC’s commitment to ensuring that future Games organisers are able to benefit from the experience and lessons of past organisers by providing a forum for the exchange of Games-related knowledge.
The debrief will be split into three different parts. The first part, of three days from 3 to 5 June, will focus exclusively on the technological aspects of the Games in Vancouver. The second part, from 7 to 10 June, will look at all other aspects of the Games organisation and will include a combination of plenary sessions, functional area workshops and sessions that look at the needs of the different Games stakeholders. The final element of the debrief will be a special extension to the programme on 11 June, specifically for workshops devoted to the Paralympic Games.
The debrief sessions will look at all manner of Games-related subjects, including areas such as athlete services, the environment, sustainability, spectator experience, press operations, ceremonies, transport and accommodation. These subjects amongst a host of others will allow future organisers to gain a better understanding of how the Vancouver team operated in these areas, and how they might be able to adapt those lessons to their own Games context.
The Vancouver 2010 Debrief is a key part of a much larger transfer of knowledge programme run by the IOC called Olympic Games Knowledge Management (OGKM). Set up during the preparations for the Sydney Games in 2000, OGKM is an integrated platform of services and documentation which assists Games organisers in their preparations; lets them evaluate their progress and success; and helps to define the future of the Games. The OGKM programme includes a number of different tools and services that organisers can draw upon, and these include a Games observer programme, expert workshops, technical manuals, a Games evaluation process, an extranet and a secondee programme. OGKM aims to help bid cities and Organising Committees develop their own vision and understand how a host city and its citizens can benefit from the long-lasting impact of the Games, while managing the opportunities and risks that such an event produces.

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Early results from the 2010 Winter Games in Whistler show that the resort's role as Host Mountain Resort has led to significant gains in international awareness according to the Canadian resort, "...a critical element in growing visitation over the coming years".
Whistler calculates that approximately 3.5 billion people around the world watching the Games on their televisions and online.
Based on a study conducted by Tourism Whistler in partnership with Tourism British Columbia, awareness of Whistler increased significantly in the key overseas markets of United Kingdom, Germany and Australia. The study measured awareness of Whistler before and after the 2010 Winter Games (November 2009, January 2010 and March 2010).
Increases by market:
United Kingdom awareness of Whistler increased from 32 per cent to 45 percent, in Germany awareness increased from 19 per cent to 42 per cent and in Australia, already the most aware with 48 per cent of Australians knowing about Whistler before the Games, 62 per cent were aware afterwards.
During the 17 days of the Olympic Winter Games, Whistler achieved an average occupancy of 97 per cent. In the months leading-up to February 2010, Tourism Whistler had forecasted 90 per cent occupancy during the Olympic Winter Games period, acknowledging that this would require out-performing the levels achieved by each of the recent host destinations of the Winter Games - including Torino, Italy and Salt Lake City, US.
The value of the Games-time broadcast coverage is being leveraged by Tourism Whistler - with marketing and sales efforts aimed at converting awareness of Whistler into visits from travellers in existing and new markets in the months and years ahead.
A vital new message being shared with potential visitors focuses on the many legacies of the 2010 Winter Games that will now be an essential part of their Whistler experience. Some of the Whistler legacies that will be enjoyed by future visitors include Whistler Olympic / Paralympic Park which the resort intends to position Whistler as a destination for cross-country skiers from around the world and as a site for future World Cup events.
The Whistler Sliding Centre will launch a public ride program in the 2010/ 2011 winter season for visitors who want to experience bobsleigh and skeleton. World Cup competitions have already been scheduled for next winter.
The $600 million investment to improve the safety, reliability and capacity of the Sea to Sky Highway between Vancouver and Whistler will be publicised for providing visitors with a faster, easier and more enjoyable journey to and from the resort than previously.

admin British Columbia, Canada, Cypress Mountain, Olympic Winter Games, Ski and Snowboard News, Vancouver, Vancouver 2010, Whistler, Whistler Blackcomb, Whistler Olympic Park Ski and Snowboard News

During the Olympic Games in Vancouver in February, millions lived, and contributed to, the passion of the Games via the IOC’s social media platforms. The IOC has significantly expanded its use of social media and other online communications tools to engage younger audiences, promote Olympic values and share the magic of the Games with the largest possible audience.
The IOC’s Facebook page has attracted over 1.5 million fans and generated nearly 200 million impressions since its launch in January. Providing behind-the-scenes updates from athletes and teams - Lindsey Vonn, Shawn White and Justin Kripps are just some of the athletes featured – the Facebook page also enables fans to share their Olympic experiences. The Olympic photo contest saw almost 4,000 photos submitted by fans, ranging from superb sports competition imagery to more personal Olympic experience shots like the family pet dog wearing the Vancouver red mittens. Fans were given the opportunity to win free tickets to see Olympic events, cheer for their favourite athletes or even "play" Olympic sports. The Official Vancouver 2010 Video Game received over five million plays. Platforms such as Facebook are also proving to be effective ways to reach out to younger audiences that are perhaps more difficult to reach through traditional media - over 60% of the Facebook fans are under the age of 24.
The lead-up to the Games in Vancouver also saw the IOC present on YouTube, with its interactive The Best of Us challenge. This allowed members of the general public to compete against Olympic athletes in a series of fun and playful challenges. Olympic athletes such as Michael Phelps, Lindsey Vonn and Jenny Owens created unique challenges which attracted over three million views. Prizes were awarded - including a trip to the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Games for the best challenges that were posted.
Flickr is also being used to share the strong moments of the Games through Olympic imagery. More than 11,000 Olympic photos, taken by over 600 photographers, are shared with the general public on this image hosting website. During the Vancouver Games, the IOC following on Twitter doubled to over 12,000.

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