About FIS
What we do
Overseeing the sport
Recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), FIS manages the Olympic disciplines of Alpine Skiing, Cross-Country Skiing, Ski Jumping, Nordic Combined and Freestyle Skiing and Snowboarding, including setting the international competition rules. FIS is also recognised by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) and manages Para Alpine, Para Nordic and Para Snowboard.
Through its 140 member nations, more than 7,000 FIS competitions are staged annually.
The federation oversees World Cup competitions and biannual World Championships.
FIS has a clear anti-doping policy and a rigorous framework for testing.
Widening the reach of snow sports
FIS does extensive work in ‘smaller’ ski nations around the world to promote snow sports and advise on the development of training and event infrastructure and an athlete pipeline
The federation also has initiatives to promote snow activities to the young, most notably the ‘Bring Children to the Snow’ programme which supports over 1000 events in 53 countries.
Supporting athletes
FIS looks out for the interests of over 30,000 licensed and active athletes, offering support with career development, wellbeing and athletes’ rights.
The FIS ‘Safe Sport’ initiative sets clear boundaries to ensure that athletes’ physical and psychological health is respected, with independent and confidential helplines to report harassment or abuse.
The Marc Hodler Foundation – a charitable initiative under the umbrella of FIS – provides support to athletes who have sustained serious injury.
Opening up snow sports to all
In recent years great strides have been made to include Para athletes in the FIS family, with the federation taking over the full governance and management of Para Alpine Skiing, Para Cross-Country Skiing and Para Snowboarding.
FIS is now a member of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) and represents 97% of the medals on the Paralympic Winter Games Programme.
In addition, FIS has agreed to take over the management of Para Biathlon, meaning that the federation is now responsible for the deliverables of all four Para Snowsports.
Promoting sustainability
Climate action is a long-term, year-in, year-out priority for FIS.
As a signatory to the UN Sports for Climate Action Framework, the federation has pledged to halve its carbon footprint by 2030.
A sustainability strategy (Impact Programme) has been developed to provide an overview of initiatives and projects that are already underway, or in the planning stage also to help all event organisers cut their emissions.
In addition, FIS decided to support a project that helps indigenous communities to prevent deforestation and fight climate change, the FIS Rainforest Initiative. This significant project, based in Peruvian rainforest, is helping to avoid deforestation which is the cause of up to 20% of global emissions.
Besides climate change, the other two areas FIS has decided to work on are nature and biodiversity protection and the circular economy.
FIS Facts & Figures
Formed: 1924 during the first Winter Olympic Games in Chamonix, France.
Headquarters: Oberhofen, Switzerland.
Annual Income: 47 million Swiss Francs
Responsible for: Recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) as the official governing body for disciplines of Alpine Skiing, Cross-Country-Skiing, Ski Jumping, Nordic Combined, Freestyle Skiing and Snowboard. FIS is also recognised by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) and manages Para Alpine, Para Nordic and Para Snowboard.
Member Nations: FIS is comprised of 140 member National Ski Associations.
Number of World Championships: 6 biannually (Alpine, Nordic, Freestyle Skiing/Snowboarding, Telemark, Grass Skiing, Speed Skiing)
Number of World Cups Events: Appoximately 330 annually
Total number of FIS sanctioned competitions: Over 7’000 annually
Number of licensed and active athletes: 30’764
Gender ratio licensed and active athletes: 63% Men, 37% Women
As well as competitive snow sports, FIS undertakes specific initiatives to promote snow activities, conserve the natural environment, fight against doping in sport and ensure Safeguarding of athletes in winter sports.
FIS campaign to boost the number of snow sports participants, Bring Children to the Snow, currently supports 1’056 Organisers in 53 countries and sees each year over 1’000 events and actions to bring children to snow sports.
You can find useful statistics for all disciplines here:
Disciplines
Alpine Skiing
Alpine Skiing features an athlete-against-clock format with the fastest skier winning. It has five different race formats. The downhill features the longest course and the highest speeds. The super-G stands for super giant slalom, an event that combines the speed of downhill with the more precise turns of giant slalom. In these events each skier makes one run down a single course and the fastest time determines the winner.
The slalom is the alpine event with the shortest course and the quickest turns. The giant slalom has fewer turns and wider, smoother turns. In both events, each skier makes two runs down two different courses on the same slope. The times are added and the fastest total time determines the winner. In the alpine combined event, one shortened downhill run is followed by a one-run slalom. The times are added together and the fastest total time determines the winner.
Additionally, FIS has introduced a parallel ski format, which puts two skiers head-to-head on identical courses with the fastest racer moving onto the next round. The parallel format can be slalom or giant slalom and can be staged in urban environments as well as traditional mountain venues.
Cross-Country Skiing
Cross-Country Skiing is one of three Nordic disciplines within FIS. Athletes propel themselves either by striding forward (classic style) or side-to-side in a skating motion (skate skiing), aided by arms pushing on longer ski poles against the snow. The distances can range from sprint format (1-2 km) to long distance 50 km events. The disicpline is known for being an endurance sport and is also largely practiced recreationally. The annual highlight on the FIS World Cup calendar is the Tour de Ski.
Ski Jumping
Ski jumping is also a Nordic skiing discipline. The athletes descend a jumping ramp (in-run) to a take-off table where they jump and fly to cover a distance as far as possible over a landing hill. Each jump is evaluated by five judges according to the distance traveled and the style performed. There are three primary events: the individual normal hill, the individual large hill and the team event on the large hill. In the individual events, each athlete gets two jumps and the athlete with the highest combined score is the winner. In the team event, each team has four members and the field is reduced to the eight best teams after the first jump. The Four Hills tournament is the annual highlight on the FIS World Cup calendar. Additionally there is ski flying on an even larger hill where athletes cover close to 250 meters in distance.
Nordic Combined
Nordic Combined is the FIS discipline in which athletes compete in both cross-country skiing and ski jumping. Traditionally, the athletes complete the ski jumping portion first and then start the cross-country race with a time handicap based on their jumping performance. The distances and size of the jumping hill vary from competition to competition.
Freestyle Skiing
Freestyle skiing is comprised of aerials, moguls, ski cross, ski halfpipe and ski slopestyle. It is also commonly referred to as freeski in the areas of halfpipe and slopestyle.
In aerials, athletes ski off 2-4 meter jumps, which propel them up to 6 meters in the air. Once in the air, aerialists perform multiple flips and twists before landing on a 34 to 39-degree inclined landing hill about 30 meters in length.
Moguls are a series of bumps on a trail formed when skiers push the snow into mounds or piles as they execute short-radius turns with jumps included.
Ski Cross has a mass start of four racers designed to test the skiers’ skills in turns of a variety of types and sizes, flat sections and traverses, as well as rolls, banks and ridges. The fastest skier wins.
Ski halfpipe is the sport of riding skis in a halfpipe. Competitors gradually ski to the end of the pipe by doing flips and tricks.
In slopestyle, athletes ski down a course including a variety of obstacles including rails, jumps, and other features. Points are scored for amplitude, originality and quality of tricks.
Big Air is similar to slopestyle, however it features just one large jump for athletes to perform tricks. Thanks to its compact nature it can be staged in urban environments.
Snowboarding
Snowboarding involves descending a slope while on a snowboard attached to a rider's feet. The development of snowboarding was inspired skateboarding, sledding, surfing and skiing and entered the Olympics in 1998.
Alpine Snowboarding is a head-to-head competition that features riders going down an alpine-style course alternating between gates. It features a knock-out format with several rounds before a winner is determined.
Snowboard Cross has a mass start of six racers designed to test the skiers’ skills in turns of a variety of types and sizes, flat sections and traverses, as well as rolls, banks and ridges. The fastest skier wins.
Snowboard half-pipe is the sport of riding a snowboard on a half-pipe. Competitors gradually ski to the end of the pipe by doing flips and tricks.
In slopestyle, athletes snowboard down a course including a variety of obstacles including rails, jumps, and other features. Points are scored for amplitude, originality and quality of tricks.
Big Air is similar to slopestyle, however it features just one large jump for athletes to perform tricks. Thanks to its compact nature it can be staged in urban environments.