Bring Children to the Snow

by andrew cholinski

kEy PrOgraMMES cOnTinuE TO ThrivE

Prior to the 2020/21 season, FIS sent a clear message to all SnowKidz and World Snow Day organisers: “If in doubt, wait it out.” Although the message was not the normal positive information the Bring Children to the Snow campaign seeks to deliver, it was by far the best decision to ensure the health, safety and wellbeing of the general public.

The decision to instruct organisers to postpone events had subsequent consequences, with the most obvious being a reduction in the number of events and activities. In total, 231 events and activities took place over the course of 12 months, which was down from an average of 1,006. But the news was not all bad.

The past 12 months allowed more time for those involved in programmes to focus on areas such as public communications. And the focus yielded results. Over the past 12 months, 38 new organisers and two new countries – Mexico and the United Arab Emirates – joined the Bring Children to the Snow campaign.

In addition, four new partners were added: the Special Olympics, World Para Snow Sports, the International Federation for Ski Patrollers, and the International Ski Instructors Association. Each of these organisations brings a wealth of knowledge, which over coming years will be integrated into the Bring Children to the Snow programmes in the form of events and support for all organisers.

SnOwkiDz

One of the key features of the SnowKidz programme is the flexibility it provides with the timing of events and activities. This feature became a major benefit in the past season.

At the start of the 2020/21 season, the desire to hold SnowKidz events and activities was strong. This was reflected in the numbers, with 347 SnowKidz events registered. As the season progressed and it was evident that Covid-19 restrictions would affect events, organisers took advantage of that flexibility and instead of immediately cancelling events, simply pushed them further into the season. In the end, 128 events and activities took place in 16 countries.

As well as having that flexibility, organisers also took advantage of other SnowKidz tools and support. According to download data, the SnowKidz Safety Animations were downloaded 211 times over the course of 12 months. In addition, the SnowKidz cookbooks were viewed 103 times.

SnowKidz surpassed expectations given the circumstances. Organisers have expressed a strong desire to hold events in the 2021/22 season. It is hoped the Covid-19 situation will improve and planned events can go ahead.

wOrlD SnOw Day

When registration opened for World Snow Day on 1st July 2020 it was still uncertain what restrictions would be in place on 17th January 2021. Despite this, FIS made a commitment to support all events and activities regardless of whether they would proceed or not. As a result, all the support features of World Snow Day were activated.

One of the support programmes available to organisers is the World Snow Day Awards, which take place every two years and recognise the best activities that bring children to the snow under varying circumstances. For the 2021 edition, 43 of the 103 events entered, with the results as follows:

line honours: Recognises the first event to register World Snow Day 2021 Prize: 1,000 CHf Winner: Le Club de Ski de Fond d’Evain (CAN)

Most creative world Snow Day: Recognises the most creative and unique actions Prize: Film crew to film winner’s next World Snow Day Winner: Korean Ski Association (KOR)

best Small world Snow Day: Recognises the best event and action with under 500 persons Prize: 2,000 CHf Winner: Club Peruano SandSnow (PER)

best world Snow Day: Recognises the best events and actions with over 500 persons Prize: 10,000 CHf Winner: KidsSport and Kis Somlyó Ski (ROM)

In addition to the World Snow Day Awards, organisers of World Snow Day once again teamed up with partner Atomic to host the #atomicsnowday contest. As in previous years, two sets of family skis, four Alpine skis and four Cross-Country skis were up for grabs. The contest was open to all ski enthusiasts around the world. To win, entrants had to upload their best family ski photo with the hashtag #atomicsnowday. The winners were announced online on 17th January 2021.

The 11th edition of World Snow Day will take place on 16th January 2022. FIS looks forward to another successful event and hopes ski fans from around the world can join others on the snow.

ThE SnOwSPOrTS cOMMuniTy EvOlvES

by Jürg capol

bETTEr SErving ThE SnOwSPOrTS cOMMuniTy

Insights from a recent survey of winter sports fans will inform FIS as it prepares for the journey ahead.

A total of 4,058 winter sports fans completed the survey, three times more than the number of fans who took part in the 2018 survey. One-third of responses were sent via a link on social media platform Instagram. The survey results will help FIS management make decisions about which initiatives it should allocate resources to.

Here is a snapshot of the survey findings:

After a season significantly impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic, fans are eager to follow competitions and participate more in skiing and snowboarding, providing FIS with unique opportunities to leverage this interest. Snowsports fans are passionate, love to be outdoors and want to stay overnight in snowsports destinations in the future, the survey respondents said.

Countries across Europe were well represented in the survey, even though the largest proportion of replies came from the United States. Almost 80 per cent of fans consider skiing and snowboarding as central activities in their lives. The survey also confirmed that snowsports fans are more likely to start skiing or snowboarding under the age of 18, with 40 per cent under the age of five. These young skiers are usually introduced to the sport through a family holiday or by growing up close to a ski resort.

The first rule of Alpine skiing is the strongest held value and speaks to how deeply it resonates with the community. Fun and nature are also two of the strongest values

associated with skiing and snowboarding. Watching athletes push their physical and mental limits when competing provides a connection to mountain environments.

Knowledge of and interest in iconic athletes, races and venues help foster the sense of tradition in snowsports.

The survey identified that FIS has a duty to take bolder, more proactive action on climate and protecting the environment. This is increasingly the expectation of rightsholders and FIS partners.

Seventy per cent of fans under 24 are active on social media channels Snapchat and TikTok, and FIS must recognise this as it continues to shape its winter sports content programme. Fans value FIS for its high-quality official race-related content and the contribution athletes make in connecting with fans in more personal ways.

On race days, live coverage is predominantly what fans are looking to watch. However, there are many other forms of content that FIS can continue to invest in, and the FIS App could be the ideal vehicle for content distribution to the wider public.

Athlete-produced content is the most engaging and of greatest interest outside race days, as it brings fans closer to the athletes and how they live.

ThE SPOnSOrShiP gaME changED

The sports sponsorship landscape is moving towards a new, deeper form of partnership. Having more objectives, touchpoints and audience profiles requires a clear position for each consumer demographic. The new sponsorship proposition will be built on deep integration between like-minded obligations and values, demonstrating a brand’s core offering and creating meaningful and measurable impact for fans and other stakeholders.

In addition to the impact delivered in existing sponsorship agreements, FIS will add the nuances to explain why its audiences can meet sponsor targets and measurable benchmarks, as well as targets on digital platforms. As a matter of best practice FIS will engage with its partners to support their activation strategies and seek to identify new activation opportunities.

FIS has a strong existing platform to enable growth and ensure snowsports remain popular and relevant. There is a near universal recognition of the Audi brand and the company’s interest in manufacturing electric cars. However, there is plenty of room to grow Audi’s desired positioning as the world’s premium electric mobility brand.

FIS has clear support to do so from snowsports fans, so it’s a win-win situation: Audi is helping FIS to become more sustainable, while FIS is helping Audi win the global electric car market by showing fans the next sustainable chapter in “Vorsprung durch Technik”.

The sponsorship industry is evolving beyond exposure-based partnerships. FIS has delivered these traditional benefits (awareness) by shifting the conversation from exposure to engagement – how FIS and sponsors can work together. FIS has a highly desirable audience for sponsors; they are passionate, loyal and engaged and with high spending power. The research undertaken allows FIS to use the insights obtained to realign audience positioning to sponsors and to identify customer segments to meet each brand’s specific targets.

FiS lEaDing ThE way in anTi-DOPing

by lukas brawand

FIS is strongly committed to protecting clean athletes and clean sport. Therefore, the past FIS World Cup season saw a large testing programme in close collaboration with various national anti-doping agencies (NADOs).

In the 2020/21 season (including the training period) between 1st April 2020 and 31st March 2021, FIS conducted 662 urine and 377 blood out-of-competition tests (566 including erythropoiesis-stimulating agents, or ESAs). Some 612 urine samples were collected from in-competition testing. One of the key activities remains collecting athlete biological passport (ABP) samples. In total, 893 blood passport samples were added to the programme during out-of-competition testing and 98 during in-competition testing.

Many more doping control samples were collected in the FIS Olympic disciplines under the authority of the NADOs. These numbers are not included in the detailed FIS testing statistics below:

FIS In-ComPetItIon teStS SeASon 2020/21

Urine eSAs (urine/blood) Blood Blood passport

Cross-Country Skiing 159 158 Nordic Combined 56 50

Ski Jumping Alpine Skiing 100 2

150

Freestyle Skiing 89 Snowboard 58

total 612 210

47 75

17 23

26

90 98

FIS oUt-oF-ComPetItIon teStS SeASon 2020/21

Urine eSAs (urine/blood) Blood Blood passport

Cross-Country Skiing 287 400 Nordic Combined 85 68

Ski Jumping Alpine Skiing 33 17

202 73

Freestyle Skiing 23 3 Snowboard 32 5

total 662 566

245 539

56 156

5 3

60 195

4

7

377 893

raiSing awarEnESS FOr clEan SPOrT

“Clean as Snow” is a year-round awareness campaign run by FIS to support the fight for fair and clean sport. FIS is fully committed to the fight against doping and is proud to have World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) endorsement for its Clean as Snow campaign.

FIS was also part of the Play True Day 2021 and celebrated this WADA initiative together with athletes, NADOs, sport federations and other anti-doping stakeholders as a global anti-doping community. This year, the campaign focused on the question: “What does Play True mean to you?”

Play True Day is dedicated to raising awareness among athletes, the sporting public and others about the importance of protecting clean sport. Its social media campaign reached more than 50 million people worldwide with FIS, numerous individuals and organisations taking part from around the globe.

On the occasion of Play True Day 2021, WADA President Witold Banka said: “Play True means respect for every human being, a value that is so central to WADA’s mission. Despite the various challenges we face in anti-doping, I remain optimistic for clean sport. We owe it to the world’s athletes to provide them with the opportunity to gather on a level playing field and to entertain and amaze us with their athletic prowess and sense of fair play. There will continue to be challenges along the way but, on this Play True Day, I am confident that if we work together in a spirit of respect, we will succeed in further strengthening the global anti-doping system for the benefit of all athletes.”

FiS anD iTa TO ParTnEr wiTh uMiT TirOl

In order to protect and empower athletes and the broader FIS community as they navigate the anti-doping system, FIS has partnered with the International Testing Agency (ITA) to develop a comprehensive clean sport education programme. The partnership came into effect in September 2020 and its first term runs until the end of 2021.

In a first step, the ITA, in close collaboration with FIS, is developing an education plan for FIS in accordance with WADA’s International Standard for Education 2021. The ITA will also provide consultative support to ensure the education plan is fully compliant with the 2021 World Anti-Doping Code, which makes anti-doping education compulsory for code signatories for the first time.

“Education and prevention are key elements of the clean sport landscape, but they are also very different from other anti-doping programme components that can be fully delegated,” said Olya Abasolo, ITA Education Manager.

“Education needs to be developed and delivered in close collaboration with a sporting body and I am thrilled that my FIS colleagues fully embrace this approach. This coop-

eration between FIS, ITA and UMIT is a progressive initiative for clean sport education that combines our respective strengths and resources in order to protect and empower FIS athletes and the larger sport community.”

In a second step, and in collaboration with FIS, the ITA will develop a strategy for the implementation of the plan for different target groups, including athletes, coaches and athlete support personnel.

FIS has partnered with health university UMIT Tirol to provide evidence-based and tailored prevention programmes to athletes. The programmes evaluate current prevention measures with the support of an independent research-driven process. Athletes are included in this process to allow researchers to learn about their perceptions of the programmes and potential for improvements.

The ITA will work closely with UMIT Tirol to ensure the right metrics are in place to measure the growth and effectiveness of the education efforts.

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