Fears of Dangerous Training Conditions Ignite Ski Safety Debate Before Olympics
A picturesque mountainous backdrop with high peaks scattered with glistening white snow and unpredictable thrills are what ski fans live for. But beneath the beauty and the excitement, a darker current runs through our sport. It’s a conversation whispered in lift lines and debated in hushed tones after a bad fall: the inherent and often overlooked dangers of training.
The recent, tragic death of Italian skier Matteo Franzoso and the candid reflections from superstars like Mikaela Shiffrin have ripped this conversation out into the open. We can no longer afford to ignore it.
Every skier knows the risks. It’s a pact we make with the mountain each time we click into our bindings. But there’s a growing sense that the training environment, where champions are forged, has become unacceptably hazardous. Shiffrin, after a terrifying crash of her own, put it perfectly:
“We are often training in conditions where the variables are just too many to control.” That statement hits hard because it’s a truth every competitive skier has felt deep in their gut. We’ve all been there—staring down a course set on boilerplate ice with inadequate fencing, wondering if pushing the limit today is worth the potential cost.
Why Training Courses Fall Short on Safety
The gap between race day and training day is becoming a chasm. Race courses, especially at the World Cup level, are fortified. Multiple layers of B-netting, careful course preparation, and a full team of medical staff are standard. Yet, training courses are a different story.
For financial and logistical reasons, the same standards simply aren’t applied. It’s often left to individual teams or local resorts to set up a safe environment, and the results are inconsistent at best. French powerhouse Alexis Pinturault was blunt: “We are training in many places where it’s not really safe, yes, that’s 100% sure.” This isn’t an exaggeration.
Matteo Franzoso’s fatal crash in Chile, where he went through two layers of fencing and into a wooden barrier, is a horrifying testament to this reality. It’s a stark reminder that what stands between a skier and a life-altering injury can be nothing more than a few feet of worn-out netting.
The Cultural Shift Needed to Address Training Dangers
For too long, the culture of our sport has been to accept the risks simply. “It’s an extreme sport,” as Sofia Goggia said, and she’s right. But as Shiffrin pointed out, we’ve become so accustomed to speaking that the sport carries an “inherent risk” that we’ve become blind to the truly life-threatening ones.
The “take it or leave it” mindset is not just outdated. It’s dangerous. It absolves those in power of the responsibility to make things safer. The Italian Winter Sports Federation has taken a stand, calling on the International Ski Federation (FIS) to establish dedicated training centers that mirror World Cup safety standards. It’s a move that’s long overdue.
The responsibility can’t be offloaded onto local ski resorts that lack the resources and expertise. While FIS President Johan Eliasch has stated the governing body is working to “prevent as much as possible horrible accidents,” many in the community, like Austrian coach Roland Assinger, feel it has been “only talking” so far.
Where Do We Go From Here?
The solution isn’t simple, but it is clear: we need collaboration and investment. Ski racing is a global sport, and the federations need to work together. Austrian skier Vincent Kriechmayr’s hope for better coordination among the big federations training in the same regions is a practical starting point.
Pooling resources to ensure one or two venues meet a high safety standard is far more effective than dozens of teams training on poorly prepared, unsafe slopes. The money is there. Eliasch himself noted that FIS distributed nearly 100 million to its member federations over four years.
It’s a matter of prioritizing where that money goes. Investing in safer training environments isn’t a luxury. It’s a fundamental necessity to protect the athletes who are the heart and soul of this sport. As skiers and fans, we have a role to play. We must continue to talk about this, to demand action, and to support the athletes who are brave enough to speak out.
Final Thoughts
The thrill of watching someone arc a perfect turn at 80 miles per hour should never come at the expense of their life. The mountains will always demand our respect, but it’s time the institutions of our sport did the same for the athletes who dare to conquer them.
