The second biggest event in Alpine ski racing, the bi-annual World Championships, kick off in Cortina d’Ampezzo in Italy this weekend (the biggest, the winter Olympics, will also be in Cortina d’Ampezzo in five years’ time – the first staging of the games in Western Europe for two decades).
The World Championships run from this Sunday 7th to 21st February with the opening ceremony taking place on 7th February starting at 6 pm, Rome time (5pm in the UK).
At one point this biggest ski racing event of the year was in doubt due to the virus, but organisers found a way and over 600 athletes from 70 nations are heading to the event, all competing to win the 13 World Titles at stake on its world-class pistes.
No fans will be in Cortina, sadly, especially as it is looking at its best right now, covered in a thick snow blanket, but a global TV audience of 500 million people from all over the world are expected to tune in.
Details or race times is available here. There is also a Cortina 2021 Official App (available for both iOS and Android) to download which promises new content every day including news, live races, contest awards, live streaming of the press conferences and “behind the scenes” material to deliver an interactive experience.
Cortina have launched the World Championships with a video to the tune of internationally-renowned Puccini’s “Nessun dorma” which a resort spokesperson said,
“…Celebrates sports and beauty through music, landscapes and ski. Bringing together some elements internationally recognized as Italian values – opera music, the beautiful landscapes of the Dolomites, the passion for sports – the video is a statement by Cortina, the Queen of the Dolomites, on some of the elements that make it stand out as one of the best destinations of the Alps, rich in history and heritage.”
THE SKI WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS IN NUMBERS
- 5 world-class pistes (4 on which athletes will compete for the medals and 1 for qualifying races).
- 13 races
- 39 medals
- 600 athletes from 70 nations.
- 3500 people involved in the event, including volunteers, members of the Federations and 550 accredited media.
- 140 cameras installed for the TV production of the event, 90 of which to work simultaneously.
