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From the FIS President

I will never forget my first experience on the snow. It was an exhilarating feeling of excitement.

It is these first experiences that made a lasting impact on me and through World Snow Day we plan to create opportunities for others to experience the same joy I did.

In order to create opportunities for kids to try snow sports it is necessary that the various snow sports stakeholders work together. World Snow Day has proven that this can happen. Since the first edition in 2012, 4’475 World Snow Day events and actions have taken place with a combined total of 2.7 million participants. These events and actions are hosted by ski and snowboard schools, cableway companies, transport groups, tourism organisations, ski and snowboard clubs, national ski associations and event organizing companies amongst many others.
As well as its primary goal of bringing children to the snow, World Snow Day and its Organisers are addressing a variety of matters impacting snow sports. These include sustainability, diversity, safety and health. In these areas World Snow Day has provided tools and plans to which Organisers have enthusiastically implemented.

Regarding the future, I can say with confidence that the next years of World Snow Day will be positive. In the area of bringing children to the snow we will be expanding one of the main support features, the Organiser Care Package. There will be increased quantities of materials but also new items all of which will continue to be free of charge. We have established new partnerships with Special Olympics, World Para Snow Sports, Intersands and the International Federation of Ski Patrollers. These partnerships will bring new solutions in the areas of diversity and safety. In the area of sustainability, the environment and climate change, FIS together with the International Olympic Committee and United Nations will be releasing new tools and measures to reduce snow sports carbon foot print, and we are on track to become the first climate positive international sports federation in 2022 through our avoided deforestation initiatives.

I would like to sign off by saying, I strongly encourage all snow sports stakeholders to make use of World Snow Day. As well as being a day to bring children to the snow there is multitude of support and tools which will help you address a variety of challenges you face. I hope we can one day meet on the snow and create a memorable experience as I had.
Johan Eliasch
FIS President

Why World Snow Day

Primary reason:

Increasing numbers

Whilst a key role of FIS is to organise a structure of international competitions through to the highest levels, it is also committed to the global promotion and development of recreational skiing and snowboarding. The vision of FIS is for skiing and snowboarding to be the first choice winter sport and recreational activity. Research has shown that the number of people participating in snow related activities has dropped over the past years. World Snow Day is one of the key initiatives being introduced by FIS to reverse this decline.

Other important reasons:

The Environment

The young generations are the future guardians of the snow. The children of today are the ones who will be running the factories, industry and other big polluters in the future. The younger generations need to grow up caring for the environment so they and their children, too, have snow to play on in the future. Furthermore, by conserving the environment to preserve the snow, other natural environments will benefit as well.

Health Benefits

The health benefits of snow sports are obvious and well-known. One big advantage that snow sports offer over many other sports is the “awe” factor the natural environment provides. We need to pull children off their snow video games and put them on real snow. And they will discover there is more enjoyment in real snow activities than virtual ones.

Safety

Safety is taken for granted as an integral component of a modern lifestyle including snow activities. That’s why the ’10 FIS rules for the conduct of Skiers and Snowboarders,’ which are considered globally as the laws for the conduct on the pistes, are also a natural component of World Snow Day activities. They will help show children and their families how to behave and be safe on the snow and in doing so will also show them how to be safe off the snow.

Event Planning Manual

This manual has been designed to help you, the World Snow Day Event Organiser, create the biggest day on snow all year!

This document will provide you with everything you need to know about staging a World Snow Day event. For example, you will find guidance on topics such as support, key messages, important dates and event guidelines.

Feel free to either download the Manual by clicking on the links to the right or you may also view the Manual by clicking the image below.
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