Water skiing would make more sense at Winter Games than novelty events: snowboarding boss
‘It’s sliding, and it’s ski, right?’ says Johan Eliasch, who says straying too far from Games’ core identity risks weakening their appeal
International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) president Johan Eliasch warned that the Winter Olympics should not be diluted with novelty events, saying the Games must remain rooted in snow and ice – even joking that water skiing would make more sense than some recent proposals.
“I saw some videos of bicycles doing slalom in a slalom course,” Eliasch said. “Sure, you can invent anything, but quite frankly, water skiing would have more to do with the Olympic Winter Games than this.
“At least it’s sliding, and it’s ski, right?”
The International Cycling Union (UCI) has been campaigning for the addition of cyclocross, a sport where races are often contested in brutal weather and sometimes snow, to the 2030 Winter Games programme in the French Alps.
Eliasch said straying too far from the Winter Games’ core identity risked weakening their appeal rather than broadening it.
“What is so important – and I have been developing brands and formats my entire life – is that if you’re not true to your brand and your brand identity, the appreciation of the brand goes downhill,” he said.