Climate change threatens future of Winter Olympics, says skier

By Al Mayadeen Net
Source: Reuters
7 Feb 2022 08:38

Future Winter Olympics may struggle to locate host locations with enough snow and ice due to rising temperatures caused by the worsening climate crisis.

Photo depicting a snow gun used to create artificial snow used in sports competitions

US cross-country skier Gus Schumacher told Reuters that rising temperatures around the world pose a threat to winter sports.

The cross-country, biathlon, and most freestyle skiing and snowboarding events in Zhangjiakou, some 200 kilometers north of Beijing, had a tiny dusting of natural snow before the Games began, but the competition surfaces are all artificial.

It's a hint of things to come for Schumacher, as decreased precipitation limits competitors' training and competition options.

"I think climate change will have the biggest impact on our sport in the years to come - there's a lot of stuff that changes in skiing, but that's the one that's going to make it not possible," he added.

While "grippy" snow gives snowboarders and freestyle skiers better control when carving down the hills, cross-country skiers and biathletes have found the going challenging on dry snow in frigid temperatures.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has dismissed criticism of China's choice to use artificial snow.

IOC director of corporate and sustainable development Marie Sallois told Reuters that "Artificial snow is used in a consistent way for decades in winter competitive sports. It's also very widely used for leisure winter sports as we know, we practice winter sports ourselves.”

"The Winter Olympic Games, it's no exception. What is really important, like for any other activities that we practice, is to try to do it in the most efficient way, and this is what I believe Beijing 2022 is trying to achieve," she added.

The usage of man-made snow, according to skier Schumacher, has an impact on both sports and the environment.

Climate change, he believes, could jeopardize the future of winter sports.

"It's already changing it - there's less race security, fewer warm-up tracks, fewer places to ski, and so fewer people that are interested in doing it."