Racing news
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Mürren Kandahar Snowsport Festival
(Dec 15 – 21)
7 Nov 2014
A WEEK of family racing and fun in the resort where Alpine ski racing was born begins on Monday 15 December in the car-free Swiss village of Mürren.
The historic Kandahar Ski Club and the villagers of Mürren have created The Mürren Kandahar Snowsport Festival which includes ski/board clinics, competitions and partying for skiers and boarders.
The event’s flexible programme allows guests to enter as many or as few races as they want. Prices per person per race are CHF 35 (reductions for multiple entries and teams of 5+) and all clinics – led by ski celebrities – are free of charge on a first come first served basis.
The festival includes:
1. Racing : giant slalom, ski cross and the ‘Peter Lunn Freeride Challenge’ (an off-piste competition). All events open to all ages and standards; skiers, telemarkers and snowboarders.
2. Training: clinics with Kandahar and Mürren ski school qualified trainers for jumps, freeride, telemark and speed.
3. Off-slope fun : skating, snowshoeing, tobogganing, spa, speed-flying demonstration, Christmas parade, BBQ and live music.
Races on the final three days are open to all disciplines/ages and include the Murren Kandahar Ski Cross; International Schilthorn Giant Slalom / Telemark speed race; and the Peter Lunn Freeride.
For more information on reservations and registration for races/clinics got to:
English Alpine Championships return to Bormio in 2015
THE ENGLISH Alpine Championships will be held in Bormio, Italy from 15-19 February 2015 for the 9th year in succession.
An opening parade will take place on the day before the races get underway.
A Team Parallel Slalom, which formed part of the Championships for the first time in 2014, will be back in the programme.
New for 2015 will be the move of most of the Children’s races to the ‘Adler’ piste in the Oga area of the resort.
English Alpine Championships Provisional Programme
Sat 14 Feb:
Opening parade (p.m.)
Sun 15 Feb:
FIS night Slalom (Stelvio)
U14/U16 Giant Slalom (Adler)
Mon 16 Feb:
FIS Giant Slalom (Stelvio)
U10/U12 Giant Slalom (Adler)
Tue 17 Feb:
FIS Super-G (Stelvio)
U14/U16 Slalom (Stella Alpina)
Floodlit team parallel Slalom
Wed 18 Feb:
FIS NJR Giant Slalom (Stelvio)
U10/U12 Combi (Adler)
Thu 19 Feb:
FIS NJR Slalom (Stelvio)
U14/U16 Super-G (Adler)
For all the information about the English Alpine Championships, including the 2014 Championships video, visit www.englishalpinechamps.org.uk. You can also follow the Championships on Twitter @AlpineChamp and Facebook www.facebook.com/alpinechamps
Paralympian Jade announces retirement from racing
7 Nov 2014
VISUALLY impaired ski racer Jade Etherington, who became the first British woman to claim a Paralympic skiing medal at Sochi, has announced her retirement from competitive skiing.
Jade also became Britain’s most successful female Paralympian during the Sochi games when she won three silvers and a bronze with her guide Caroline Powell.
She said: "After many discussions with Caroline we have both decided to retire from competitive ski racing as part of the British Disabled Ski Team (BDST). We will be sad to leave the Paralympic Alpine Skiing programme and we will both miss our sport and athletes on the team and circuit.
"Caroline and I now wish to follow different paths which we feel will be more fulfilling for us in the long term: Caroline with her instructing in Switzerland, while I would like to complete my qualification as a teacher and increase my motivational speaking.
"It was an honour to represent ParalympicsGB and to make history at the Sochi 2014 Winter Paralympics. Caroline and I are Britain's most successful Winter Paralympians, with four medals from our first games, and we really hope to inspire more people to enjoy skiing as a result."
Jade is now being considered for the shortlist for BBC Sports Personality of the Year 2014.
Tignes prepares to host 2015 British Championships
THE DELANCEY British National Alpine Ski Championships will take place in Tignes, France from Sunday 22 March to Friday 3 April 2015. This follows a move from Méribel where the Championships were held for 10 years.
The Senior, Junior and Children’s National Championships will take place at the Stade Olympiques de Lognan in Val Claret, Tignes’ highest village, which is accessed from the Tichot lift (or the Grattalu lift).
Dave Edwards, chief executive of British Ski and Snowboard said: “We would like to thank Méribel for their support in helping make the Championships a must-attend event, but we felt the Championships were ready for a change and to give another world class resort the chance to do our Championships proud.
“We are also delighted that the Championships will continue to be supported by Delancey and long term supporter of British snowsports, Sir John Ritblat.”
For competitors and spectators there will be accommodation deals on offer, with deals starting from €350 per person based on a studio for 4 people. Bookings can be made through Tignes Developpement central booking office: groups@tignes.net
For information on the Delancey British National Alpine Ski Championships visit: www.britishalpinechamps.com . You can also follow the Championships on Twitter via @TeamBSS
Freestyle Fridays go active at Southampton
ACTIVE Nation, a sport and exercise charity dedicated to getting the nation active, is organising new ‘come and have a go’ freestyle session at Alpine Snowsports Southampton on Fridays.
The inaugural event saw nearly 40 people come and have a go at freestyle skiing and snowboarding at the launch event.
They included Sochi Olympian Billy Morgan who was back at the slope where he started almost 10 years ago, riding the brand new freestyle features and giving tips and advice to the adults and youngsters taking part.
Freestyle Fridays run every week from 6-9.30pm and include ramps, rails, slide box, quarter pipe plus other features. Cost for sessions is £15 for adults and £11.50 for juniors, or included in the 30 day practice pass at £30 adults and £23 for juniors.
Freestyle Fridays also forms part of Snowsport England’s participation campaign GO SKI GO BOARD campaign.
English slopestyle champs held indoors at Chill Factore
THE RECENT English Slopestyle Championships were a huge success with more than 100 of the countries up and coming athletes showing off their ski and snowboard skills at the Chill Factore in Manchester.
The Championships, organised by Snowsport England and taking place for the second time, attracted some big names including pro snowboarder Katie Ormerod , the first female to land a double cork 1080.
Despite Katie’s recent world record breaking achievement, the Championships proved how high the level of English skiing and snowboarding is, as Katie was beaten into second place in the Women’s Snowboard Slopestyle event by Becky Menday from Aylesbury. Vaila Chapman took 3rd spot.
In the men’s snowboard event, Corey Copeland took the top spot with Scott Walsh in silver and Billy Cockrell in third.
In the ski slopestyle events it was the Rowlands family who stole the show. Madi Rowlands took the gold medal in the women’s ski slopestyle and brother Mike also came out on top claiming 1st position in the men’s competition. And it didn’t stop there, with the youngest member of the Rowlands family, Lexi, taking gold in the U12’s ski slopestyle.
In women’s ski slopestyle Molly Summerhayes took second spot behind Madi Rowlands, with Eve MacKenzie taking bronze. And for the men, Chris McCormick took silver and Harris Booth bronze.
“It’s great to see the English Slopestyle Championships go from strength to strength in its second year,” said Ian Findlay, Snowsport England Talent Development Officer. “To have over 100 athletes taking part was amazing and the standard of riding across all age groups is getting better and better.”
Skiplex sets up new race academy for children
SKIPLEX has set up a new ski race academy in association with the British Alpine Racing Ski Clubs (BARSC).
It offers introduction to ski racing sessions for children between 6 and 10 years old and aims to give young skiers the opportunity to fast track into ski racing and access to training with top British race coaches.
The sessions begin on 14 September 2014, every Sunday morning from 8 - 10am, at all three Skiplex centres at Reading, Basingstoke and Chiswick which are the UK’s only continuous, indoor revolving ski slopes.