At recent meetings with Alpine Canada and the Provincial Sport Organizations a number of significant and exciting program and age category decisions were made. The changes outlined below will have a positive impact at the club level by removing barriers and allowing increased participation and retention in our sport while favouring long-term athlete development.
The following changes are to be implemented for the 2011/2012 season:
•Nancy Greene Ski League now open to 4-year-olds: Skiers may join the NGSL at four years of age. Older racers will now be allowed to remain in the program until the age of 12. Extending the ages at the NGSL level opens up opportunities for early recruitment of keen youngsters while giving older racers the option of more time to prepare for the move to Kinder if desired.
•10-year-old skiers can now register for K1 Competitor Cards: Lowering the minimum age for K1 racers by one year will allow clubs and coaches to use their discretion and manage athletes appropriately based on their skill level and readiness to participate in K1 races.
•K2/U16 (under 16 years) Provincials: This was started last year and allows any 15-year-old racer (FIS or non-FIS) to compete in the K2/U16 Provincial speed and technical series. This will provide race opportunities for those not quite ready to compete on the full FIS race circuit.
•K2 National Championships replaced by K2 CanAm event at Panorama: There will no longer be a K2 National Championship race in Canada. The Western CanAm event (for K2’s only) will take its place for athletes from British Columbia, Alberta, Canada District West and Western USA. The Eastern provinces will host their own K2 CanAm event to include racers from Ontario, Quebec, Canada District East and Eastern USA. Racing closer to home will ultimately reduce travel time and costs for athletes.
•J1 National Championships: The J1 National Championship event will be hosted in Western Canada in 2012 and will be open to 15 and 16 year old FIS racers only. Since most J1-aged racers compete only regionally, this event will offer an opportunity to benchmark nationally. J1 aged athletes wishing to compete at the National Senior Championships can do so through qualification at the J1 Nationals.
•Downhill Racing: Alpine Canada held a Safety Summit this spring attended by experts in alpine ski racing as well as medical professionals dedicated to the study of injuries in sport. After several days of presentations and discussion, a new “speed” plan for Canadian FIS racers was established. The discipline of downhill racing will begin at age 18. Downhill racing under age 18 will be replaced with speed camps focused on training elements and speed skills. For example our Apex Downhill training camp will still take place this January (as it has for the past 15 years), but the racing portion will be super-G. Alpine Canada is in the process of creating criteria for FIS athletes under the age of 18 who will be eligible to race downhill. The specific caveats have not been determined, but may include a minimum FIS point cutoff in GS or super-G and participation at a provincial speed camp. This information will be distributed to the coaches as soon as decided.