With less than 500 days to the Olympic Winter Games 2018, preparations for the Freestyle Skiing and Snowboarding events in PyeongChang took a major step forward.
Together with members of the POCOG Sports Department, venue designers and the construction company, FIS Freestyle Skiing Coordinator Joseph Fitzgerald and FIS Snowboard Assistant Race Director Roberto Moresi visited the 2018 Olympic sites for big air, halfpipe, moguls, aerials, and parallel giant slalom last week.
The FIS Officials were impressed about the progress of the ground work, which is entering the final phase of construction. The snowboard big air events will be held at the Alpensia Ski Jumping complex where a scaffolding structure will be erected facing the ski jump, with a shared finish area between the two facilities.
“We reviewed final details for the World Cup competitions there on 26th November 2016. It’s a great venue and will be a perfect host for the first ever Olympic big air events", said Moresi.
All other Freestyle Skiing and Snowboard events will be staged at Phoenix Park where setting up of the courses is now in its final phase. “You can really feel the sense of the venue and the finish areas now,” commented Fitzgerald, “Based on last years experiences in the cross and slopestyle events we are confident that we'll have more very good FIS World Cup competitions this winter and be in great shape for the Games one year later.”
Ten FIS World Cup events in Freestyle Skiing (six) and Snowboard (four) will be held at Phoenix Park in February 2017, serving as the final official test events for the 2018 Olympics.
Solitude gearing up for 2019 World Championship test
Another main venue inspection was carried out last week as FIS Snowboard Race Director Uwe Beier, Ski Cross Race Director Martin Fiala and Technical Advisor Alberto Schiavon were in Solitude, Utah (USA). The venue for the 2019 FIS World Championship ski and snowboard cross events is gearing up for its first FIS World Cup events in snowboard cross next January.
After inspecting the site together with members of United States Ski and Snowboard Association (USSA), local organisers, and course shapers, FIS officials agreed: “It's a very nice venue, blessed with an ideal terrain for cross racing. The course will have a total length of around 1,100-1,200 metres, and will finish right in the village at Solitude.”
Cross-Country meeting new and returning Organisers
Meanwhile, in the other FIS Disciplines, the FIS Cross-Country team recently concluded a series of summer inspections including the new host venue Ulricehamn (SWE), Tyumen (RUS) and venues which have returned to the World Cup calendar after a break including Val Mustair (SUI), La Clusaz (FRA) and Otepää (EST).
Regarding the inspections, FIS Cross-Country Race Director Pierre Mignerey commented, “Summer inspections are a unique opportunity for Organisers and FIS staff to meet and discuss all aspects of the upcoming World Cup events with FIS Marketing AG, host broadcasters, National Ski Associations and other stakeholders to achieve the best possible outcomes.”
Alpine getting ready for season start
With the Audi FIS Ski World Cup season opening in Soelden (AUT) from 22nd-23rd October 2016 rapidly approaching, the FIS Alpine crew has completed a series of summer inspections at a large number of the 31 FIS World Cup host venues.
FIS officials, local organisers, TV producers, marketing agencies and course staff have inspected the slopes and discussed operational aspects and latest improvements to ensure that everything is ready for the upcoming winter.
Click here for an overview.
Source: fis-ski.com
