01 Oct 2022
From 28th to 30th September 2022, the FIS Committee Meetings took place in Zurich (SUI). For the first time after two years of the Covid-19 pandemic, they took place in person again.
As usual, to conclude the intense week of meetings with key stakeholders, Friday is dedicated to the members of the sub-committee for the Alpine World Cup, which gather to discuss specific points and proposals for the upcoming and future seasons of alpine events.
2022/2023 Calendar
Most of the 2022/2023 calendar events have remained the same. However, there are a few new events, including the brand new speed opening, “Matterhorn Cervino Speed Opening“, which is scheduled for late October for men and early November for women.
Women’s Calendar
As far as the women’s calendar is concerned, there will be the return of some venues that have been missing from the calendar for several years, such as Sestriere (ITA) and Špindlerův Mlýn (CZE). For the first time in the Women’s World Cup, the presence of Kvitfjell (NOR) is finally confirmed.
Men’s Calendar
The new calendar features a new venue for the men’s World Cup, Palisades Tahoe (USA), scheduled for the end of February. It is also important to mention the double downhill in Kitzbuhel (AUT), which was considered especially interesting for the weekend’s storytelling.
Click here to download the proposed 2022/23 Women’s World Cup Calendar.
Click here to download the proposed 2022/23 Men’s World Cup Calendar.
Every year, Sölden (AUT) is scheduled to welcome the opening of the 2022/23 Audi FIS World Cup by hosting the Women’s and Men’s Giant Slalom on the 22nd and 23rd of October.
Overall the calendars feature 41 races for women and 42 for men. The season’s highlight will be the 2023 World Ski Championships in Courchevel-Meribel (FRA) from 6 to 18 February. The French ski resort is ready for the final inspection scheduled for early October.
The season will wrap up with the finals in Soldeu (AND) from 13 to 19 March 2023.
FIS Junior World Ski Championships
The next Junior World Championships will be held in St. Anton (AUT) from the 19th to the 25th of January 2023 and will be entirely produced Live by ORF. This news is undoubtedly exciting for young world skiers.
Covid-19 season 2022/23
The Race Directors conducted the summer inspections with a covid-free policy, and thus a constant hoped-for return to normalcy. The organisers are working on planning the event weekend as a Ski Festival as it used to be before the pandemic.
Having said this, it is clear that should it be necessary, the anti-covid measures used over the past two years will be put in place, and therefore, all organisers have ready their Plan B.
Prize Money
It was proposed to increase the athletes’ price money by 10% to a minimum of CHF 132,000.
FIS new strategy
A large parenthesis was devoted to the importance of some points on which the new FIS strategy is based: sustainability, increasing fan engagement, developing iconic destinations, developing event quality, optimising weather conditions and continuing to put athletes and their safety at the centre of the priorities.
All the proposals mentioned above are subject to the approval of the FIS Council on 22 October.
