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Time for a review. Ski mountaineering has done his Olympic debut in Bormio at the Milan-Cortina 2026 Games. As an additional sport, it logically had a large part of its future at stake. Sprinting, chosen to kick off the competition last Thursday, has sparked Some criticisms: the format is too short (three minutes), too much emphasis placed on manipulation, few overruns…
« The Olympic competitions represent an expression of ski mountaineeringRegula Meier, president of the International Federation (ISMF), reminded everyone. The sport itself is broader. It ranges from compact sprint formats, which emphasize technical precision, to individual, vertical and long-distance team competitionswhich test endurance across extensive mountainous terrain. Integration into the Olympic Games enhances visibility of the whole of this landscape. »
Bronze medalist in the sprint, Thibault Anselmet also reminded viewers on France Télévisions that ski mountaineering is not limited to this race, likely aware that this format might leave spectators wanting more. Christophe Dubi, the executive director of the Olympic Games, for his part, found the result " extremely convincing ", adding: " Overall, with the audience figures we have, it's a product that worked extremely wellThe comments are really very positive. »
The international federation hopes to remain on the program in 2030, with the addition of the individual component, a longer format (around 50 minutes for men, one hour for women) which had already featured at the Lausanne 2020 Youth Olympic Games. In this context, the three medals won by the French look like good news.
Amélie-Oudéa Castéra, president of the CNOSF, spoke of ski mountaineering as a " for » on France 2 on Saturday: « We saw Thibault Anselmet and Emily Harrop, who went and won bronze and silver respectively, and now they have this gold medal (in the mixed relay). They're a pillar of the team; tomorrow, we'll try to... to ensure that ski mountaineering truly becomes an Olympic disciplineWe will have a very strong material there, which can allow us to perform at the highest level. "And one of the elements of the success of the French Alps 2030 will be precisely that the French team wins medals there."
