Ski Report - FIS Tours PyeongChang Venues; Kasper Talks 2018 Preps

(ATR) Ski officials and course designers reflect upon PyeongChang’s progress toward the 2018 Winter Olympics in the wake of a recent FIS Congress in nearby Kangwonland, Korea.

International Ski Federation president Gian-Franco Kasper, who did not accompany the contingent of race directors, FIS officials and NOC personnel on their May 31 inspection visit to the venues, offered his opinion and advice on the preliminary work accomplished by POCOG.

"Through my involvement as a member of the IOC Coordination Commission for PyeongChang 2018, I have seen the organizing committee begin their work with great motivation and without losing any momentum following their election," said Kasper, referring to PyeongChang’s first-ballot victory over Munich and Annecy, France on July 6, 2011.

"I can only recommend to them to continue to follow their schedule meticulously," added the FIS president.

"Moreover, I am especially impressed by their ‘Dream’ program, which is aimed at growing grass roots participation in the winter sports to ensure a healthy legacy after the Games, while simultaneously advancing their planning and preparations for the Games."

PyeongChang, located 50 miles from the border with North Korea in the Taebaek Mountains, is in one of the country’s least developed provinces, Gangwon.

The region initially drew recognition as a haven for winter sports enthusiasts, proving itself capable of staging international events by hosting the 1999 Asian Winter Games.

"The Asian region represents great opportunities for the sport of skiing," said Kasper. "We have seen rapid growth in our sport in several parts of Asia and very much look forward to working with the Korean Ski Association and the PyeongChang 2018 organizing committee to take full advantage of the coming years to develop our sport further.

"We are convinced that we will see significant growth in winter sports and sustained interest as a result of the Olympics in the region."

Ski Jumping Hills

FIS ski jumping director Walter Hofer tells Around the Rings that unlike all other venues being constructed for 2018, the ski jumping complex has already been well-tested as a competition site.

"This is something unique in my work with the Olympic Games; it’s the first facility which was already completed even before the selection to host the Games," said Hofer, who has served in his current role with FIS for 20 years.

"We have had competitions here for some years already on the Continental Cup level," he added.

"It is functioning and has been in place for five to six years."

Hofer compared the setting and neighboring surroundings of the venue to other former Olympic ski jumping locations in Japan – Hakuba, site of the 1998 Nagano competitions, and Sapporo, host of the 1972 Winter Games.

"The environment there is beautiful and hilly; there are really not high mountains or steep valleys," he said. "You jump from one valley to another, and it is very green and pleasant with farmhouses in many directions. It is a really nice environment."

In February, FIS will contest another Continental Cup event – an early test to gauge conditions and help facilitate early preparations for 2018.

"It should be calm and cold enough in February," said Hofer. "We will probably have to make snow as the coverage may not be enough. I do expect to have artificial snow conditions to insure smooth competition at the facility."

Alpine Race Courses

Swiss ski icon Bernhard Russi has been offering his expertise and designing challenging alpine racecourses for the Winter Olympics dating back to Calgary 1988.

The 1972 Olympic downhill champion will once again design, create and sculpt the courses at Jongbong for PyeongChang 2018.

"I will try to keep all the natural movement, build the jumps wherever the terrain allows it, and find the right balance between speed and technical turns," Russi said.

Regarding terrain, technical difficulty, length and steepness, Russi admitted that the Jongbong downhill courses for both men and women will not be as rigorous as some previous Olympic tracks.

"In general, I don’t like to compare different mountains and courses because every course has its own story," he said. "In terms of difficulty on the existing terrain, I would rate Jongbong in the middle compared to former Olympic downhills."

Regarding concerns about weather and the assumption that Korea doesn’t have a suitable mountain to contest Olympic-caliber races, Russi said: "The statistics show enough cold weather and enough snow. The mountains have enough potential for good Olympic runs."

Nordic Skiing

Cross-country skiing will be staged in the same venue cluster as ski jumping, Nordic combined and biathlon, with all events finishing in the pre-existing stadium.

Pierre Mignerey, who will take over as cross-country race director for FIS on July 1, was part of the team who surveyed the future cross-country site in PyeongChang.

"Some homologated courses are already used during FIS and national competitions, but the course system will be reviewed and especially the sprint course," said Mignerey.

"It looks like it will be possible to design some interesting courses even if there is only one small hill close to the stadium."

Mignerey also discussed what lies ahead in terms of inspection visits, development and construction over the six years approaching PyeongChang 2018.

"Our course designers and homologation inspectors will have to go there and check all of this in more detail," he said.

"They will advise concerning the courses and stadium, but as usual for the Olympic Winter Games, we will only be fully involved in the technical aspects – courses, stadium layout and other technical issues."

Reported by Brian Pinelli

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