Snowboard and ski half-pipe, ski jumping, biathlon mixed relay, figure skating and luge team relay and many other Olympic disciplines could soon become a thing of the past. And the cause? I hear you ask… the cause is global warming! Lack of snow could seriously endanger the future of the major winter sports competitions in the coming years! Olympic snowboard and ski medalists have therefore taken the bull by the horns and have sent a letter to the President of the United States about the alarming situation suggesting some drastic measures to try to save the Olympic Winter Games and, of course, the winter sports industry.
The letter was signed by 75 of the best winter sports athletes and reminds the President of the United States that the record temperatures in recent years and increasingly rare snowfalls threaten the survival of the Winter Olympics. "As professional athletes, representing a community of 23 million winter sports fans, we are the first witnesses of the effects of climate change," they wrote. The athletes have asked President Obama to immediately take two major measures that would have a significant effect on the climate, namely: to put into motion the closure of all the old coal-fueled power plants present in the United States and to renounce the Keystone pipeline project, intended to bring oil from the tar sands of Alberta from Canada to Texas! They are certainly not messing about!
You probably have some doubts about the effects of global warming after the particularly snowy winter we have experienced in Europe this year, but unfortunately it appears that the underlying long-term trend is irreversible. An international study presented recently, shows concern about the impact of climate change on tourism in the mountains in the winter season. The survey covering fifteen countries in the European Union plus Switzerland and Norway, said that in the coming decades, the snow line (the altitude at which it snows rather than rains) is more likely to be between 1500 and 1700 meters rather than an average of 1300 meters today. In 2003, an expert from the World Tourism Office and two geographers at the University of Zurich had already presented similar conclusions at the first international conference on climate change and tourism. Although currently 85% of the 230 Swiss ski resorts have a satisfactory and reliable snow record, the story looks a lot different for the future. According to statistics, between 2030 and 2050 this rate will drop to around 63% of resorts and it could even reach 44% by 2080 if temperatures continue to increase! This would mean skiing would still be possible but only above an altitude of 1800 meters! According to this report, only ski areas with access to skiing above 2000 meters have good prospects in the distant future! Go Barack, we're counting on you to set the good example…
Sergei Bachin, General Director of the Roza Khutor ski resort in the Krasnaya Polyana mountains in Russia which will host the Alpine skiing, snowboarding and freestyle events for next year’s Winter Olympics, is certainly taking the situation seriously! When interviewed, he recently said "This was a very odd winter… even locals don't remember when was the last time they had such warm days in the mountains… I want to assure all the competitors that there won't be any shortage of snow next February even if we encounter even warmer temperatures next year… it's highly unlikely we'll see the same kind of weather next year [but] we're storing huge amounts of snow just in case." This season, the Olympic venues suffered unpredictable weather with temperatures reaching 15°C in February up on the slopes!
To avoid disappointment and/or the risk of cancellation, organisers of the 2014 Winter Olympics are to store snow in case the warm temperatures in Sochi are repeated next year. More than 200 people have been collecting snow and depositing it in specially designated areas covered by a super-reflecting sun ray blanket made of isothermal fabric! Around 450,000 cubic meters of snow have been collected and will be stockpiled in eight storage areas and covered with the special thermo blanket to stop it melting during the summer. The total area of the stored snow is equal to fifteen football stadiums - 120 thousand square meters! These storage areas are located alongside the Olympic slopes on Aibgy Mountain in the ski resort of Roza Khutor and each will be connected by road to a certain slope to facilitate transportation during the preparations for the various disciplines. The estimated cost of the work exceeds 250 million rubles – approximately 6 million euros!
Leave a comment and let us know what think about this situation or join us on Facebook and post your thoughts on the subject...
Snowboard and ski half-pipe, ski jumping, biathlon mixed relay, figure skating and luge team relay and many other Olympic disciplines could soon become a thing of the past. And the cause? I hear you ask… the cause is global warming! Lack of snow could seriously endanger the future of the major winter sports competitions in the coming years! Olympic snowboard and ski medalists have therefore taken the bull by the horns and have sent a letter to the President of the United States about the alarming situation suggesting some drastic measures to try to save the Olympic Winter Games and, of course, the winter sports industry.
The letter was signed by 75 of the best winter sports athletes and reminds the President of the United States that the record temperatures in recent years and increasingly rare snowfalls threaten the survival of the Winter Olympics. "As professional athletes, representing a community of 23 million winter sports fans, we are the first witnesses of the effects of climate change," they wrote. The athletes have asked President Obama to immediately take two major measures that would have a significant effect on the climate, namely: to put into motion the closure of all the old coal-fueled power plants present in the United States and to renounce the Keystone pipeline project, intended to bring oil from the tar sands of Alberta from Canada to Texas! They are certainly not messing about!
You probably have some doubts about the effects of global warming after the particularly snowy winter we have experienced in Europe this year, but unfortunately it appears that the underlying long-term trend is irreversible. An international study presented recently, shows concern about the impact of climate change on tourism in the mountains in the winter season. The survey covering fifteen countries in the European Union plus Switzerland and Norway, said that in the coming decades, the snow line (the altitude at which it snows rather than rains) is more likely to be between 1500 and 1700 meters rather than an average of 1300 meters today. In 2003, an expert from the World Tourism Office and two geographers at the University of Zurich had already presented similar conclusions at the first international conference on climate change and tourism. Although currently 85% of the 230 Swiss ski resorts have a satisfactory and reliable snow record, the story looks a lot different for the future. According to statistics, between 2030 and 2050 this rate will drop to around 63% of resorts and it could even reach 44% by 2080 if temperatures continue to increase! This would mean skiing would still be possible but only above an altitude of 1800 meters! According to this report, only ski areas with access to skiing above 2000 meters have good prospects in the distant future! Go Barack, we're counting on you to set the good example…
Sergei Bachin, General Director of the Roza Khutor ski resort in the Krasnaya Polyana mountains in Russia which will host the Alpine skiing, snowboarding and freestyle events for next year’s Winter Olympics, is certainly taking the situation seriously! When interviewed, he recently said "This was a very odd winter… even locals don't remember when was the last time they had such warm days in the mountains… I want to assure all the competitors that there won't be any shortage of snow next February even if we encounter even warmer temperatures next year… it's highly unlikely we'll see the same kind of weather next year [but] we're storing huge amounts of snow just in case." This season, the Olympic venues suffered unpredictable weather with temperatures reaching 15°C in February up on the slopes!
To avoid disappointment and/or the risk of cancellation, organisers of the 2014 Winter Olympics are to store snow in case the warm temperatures in Sochi are repeated next year. More than 200 people have been collecting snow and depositing it in specially designated areas covered by a super-reflecting sun ray blanket made of isothermal fabric! Around 450,000 cubic meters of snow have been collected and will be stockpiled in eight storage areas and covered with the special thermo blanket to stop it melting during the summer. The total area of the stored snow is equal to fifteen football stadiums - 120 thousand square meters! These storage areas are located alongside the Olympic slopes on Aibgy Mountain in the ski resort of Roza Khutor and each will be connected by road to a certain slope to facilitate transportation during the preparations for the various disciplines. The estimated cost of the work exceeds 250 million rubles – approximately 6 million euros!
Leave a comment and let us know what think about this situation or join us on Facebook and post your thoughts on the subject...
Being lucky enough to have parents who were crazy about skiing, my love for the mountains started when I was 4 years old on our first family ski holiday to Austrian ski resort of Obergurl. One ski holiday a year was never enough and tears rolled down my face as I looked out the back window of the car on the drive down the valley on the way home!
