Crans-Montana/Valais is now officially a candidate for the 2025 Ski World Championships

On Tuesday afternoon, a delegation of Swiss-Ski, Crans-Montana and Valais submitted the Valais resort’s bid for the 2025 World Championships at the headquarters of the International Ski Federation (FIS) in Oberhofen.

The entry fee definitively validated the Swiss-Ski bid for the 2025 Alpine Ski World Championships, with Crans-Montana/Valais as organisers.  The procedure was sealed by an agreement to sponsor 200 days of training in the Haut-Plateau region for smaller nations during the 2019/20 season, and also by presenting letters of support and backing from the Confederation, the canton of Valais, the Association des Communes de Crans-Montana ACCM and the CMA Crans-Montana Ski Lift Company.

Alongside Frédéric Favre, Counsellor of the State of Valais, in the Bernese Oberland were Matthias Remund, Director of the Federal Office of Sports, representing the Confederation and Yves-Roger Rey, Secretary-General of the ACCM. Swiss-Ski, Crans-Montana’s partner, was represented by Dr. Urs Lehmann, President, and Markus Wolf, CEO.

"Switzerland is an Alpine country that has some of the richest traditions, and we are fighting to attract the World Championships here again in 2025", declared Dr. Urs Lehmann, Vice-President of the Bid Committee, whose Managing Director Marius Robyr and Deputy Managing Director Hugo Steinegger, were also present. As for the FIS, the President Gian Franco Kasper and the Secretary General Sarah Lewis were delighted to welcome the delegation, and validated the application.

The authors of the Valais bid now have three months to return a questionnaire to the FIS  that covers over 20 topics. In autumn, a FIS evaluation committee will examine and check the information on site in Crans-Montana. Then just a few months will remain for Marius Robyr and his team to clarify any outstanding questions. Finally, at the begininning of 2020, a voting recommendation will be sent by the committee to the decision-making body, the FIS Council, which is made up of 17 members.

"We’ve acquired an excellent reputation"

Obtaining the World Championships for Crans-Montana in 2025 – just eight years after the last edition in Switzerland, in Saint-Moritz – is a major challenge. The 48^th Alpine Ski Worlds will be awarded during the FIS congress in Pattaya, Thailand, on the 21^st of May 2020. The other candidate announced today is Saalbach-Hinterglemm. It is the second time that this candidature, by the resort in the Salzburg region, is in the running, having lost to Courchevel-Méribel/France in the competition for the 2023 World Championships. Like Crans-Montana, which organised an incredible celebration of Swiss skiing for the 1987 Worlds, Saalbach-Hinterglemm hosted a memorable event in 1991. It is also worth noting that the last Alpine Ski World Championships to take place in Austria was in 2013, in Schladming.

« Regarding the attribution, of course there is a political component », explains Dr. Urs Lehmann. « Alternating countries and continents has to be taken into consideration. » However Marius Robyr, Managing Director, remains optimistic : « We’ve acquired an excellent reputation with the FIS, and we are doing everything in our power to organise this big event. If it doesn’t happen in 2025, we’ll aim for 2027.»

The Valaisan can draw on his resorts’ vast experience, from organising the World Cup and European Cup races, to the excellent organisation for the finals of the European Cup (2009) and the Junior World Championships (2011). The Nationale and Mont Lachaux pistes have been redesigned in recent years, and certified to host these races. Yet to be finalised is the creation of the finish stadium. - Photos: Keystone-sda/SkiActu

The bid slogan:
On the way to the World Ski Championships, EVERYONE on board !  

Dr. Urs Lehmann, Swiss-Ski president, officially handed over the Swiss Crans-Montana/Valais bid for the organisation of the  2025 World Championships to Gian Franco Kasper, president of the International Ski Federation FIS.

From left: Yves-Roger Rey, Secretary-General of the ACCM, Matthias Remund, Director of the Federal Office of Sports, Frédréric Favre, Counsellor of the State of Valais, Gian Fanco Kasper, President FIS, Sarah Lewis, Secretary-General FIS, Dr. Urs Lehmann, President Swiss-Ski, Markus Wolf, CEO Swiss-Ski, Marius Robyr, bid's Managing Director, and Hugo Steinegger, Deputy Managing Director.

Video (only in French): Johan Tachet, SkiActu