FIS Rejects Comments on Slopestyle Dangers

The International Ski Federation defends the newOlympic discipline of slopestyle after comments that it is too dangerous to be on the Olympic program.

IOC head of scientific activities Lars Engebretsen delivered that harsh assessment last week in Monaco at the IOC World Conference on Prevention of Injury and Illness in Sport. He called the rate of injury among competitors in the event "unacceptably high, absolutely very, very, very high," in comments to the Associated Press.

Engebretsen is the chief doctor for the Norwegian Federation of Sports and has held his scientific IOC post since 2007.

FIS secretary general Sarah Lewis rejects the comments from Engebretsen.

"These were personal comments by Lars Engebretsen, and do not represent the position of the IOC," said. "Analysis of the injury data from Sochi is not yet completed, so no conclusions can or should be drawn from them."

"The protection of the athletes’ health and the safety of the environment they are competing in are top priorities for the IOC, as well as for the International Ski Federations who work actively together on these important topics on an ongoing basis," Lewis said.

At the Sochi Games, snowboard legend Shaun White withdrew from the slopestyle competition after hurting his left wrist while practicing, citing injury risk, while another medal contender, Torstein Horgmo of Norway, broke a collarbone in a training crash. Other competitors expressed concerns regarding the dangers of the course.

Regarding the four slopestyle events (M&W skiing & snowboarding) that were contested at the Rosa Khutor Extreme Park in Sochi, Lewis said: "It would be premature to comment on the quantity and quality of injuries that occurred as the full IOC Injury and Illness Surveillance Study conducted by the IOC Medical Commission has not yet been finalized."

On Monday, snowboard slopestyle’s first Olympic gold medalist Sage Kotsenburg tweeted: "This is absurd! Slopestyle might get taken out of the Olympics because it is too dangerous?!"

Any decision to drop slopestyle from the Olympics would have to be taken by FIS.

The conference in Monaco was the second edition and attracted 980 participants from 81 countries including 113 speakers.

"We went into the conference with high expectations and these were exceeded on every front," said IOC Medical Director Michael Budgett.

"From the opening session with Prince Albert II, all particpants threw themselves into workshops, keynotes, symposia and poster sessions delivered by inspirational researchers and practitioners."

Written by Brian Pinelli

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