FIS and HOVERAir bringing fans closer to snow sports through self-flying cameras

They may not have come home with a medal, but thanks to spectacular aerial shots throughout the coverage of the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games, drones certainly enjoyed a starring role. Olympic Broadcasting Services (OBS) deployed no fewer than 25 drones at the Games, including 15 first-person view (FPV) models able to follow competitors at race speed, giving viewers a thrilling athletes’ perspective of disciplines including ski jumping, alpine and freestyle skiing, snowboarding and more. 

“Technology increasingly offers us a lot of opportunities,” said OBS CEO Yiannis Exarchos, speaking to NBCUniversal.com. “It’s about finding the most engaging ways of telling the stories of the biggest athletes in the world in the most effective way possible.”

FIS on the front foot

FIS has been preparing for this shift, rolling out a unified content strategy during the Games under the banner of “I LOVE SNOW”, focusing on the human side of winter sport - putting emotion, identity and lived experience over results and medal counts. With the FIS ecosystem having already driven record digital engagement in the 2025/26 season, even prior to Milano Cortina, the message is clear: fans want authentic human stories and to feel what snow sports are like - as close to first-hand as possible.

“Snow sports’ potential to generate thrilling images is second to none, which is why FIS has been committed to innovation into how our communities showcase the action,” said Oliver Kraus, FIS Commercial & Global Partnerships Director, when HOVERAir were announced on 3 February 2026 as FIS’ official flying-camera partner across all disciplines.

Hands-free filming, in any conditions

A foldable, pocket-sized drone that weighs just 192g, HOVERAir’s X1 PROMAX is able to track skiers or snowboarders at speeds up to 42 km/h (26mph) while recording cinematic 8K footage and operating reliably in whatever conditions the winter weather supplies. And unlike traditional drones, the X1 needs no controller and no pilot - taking off, tracking and returning automatically - allowing athletes, fans and media to focus on the moment rather than on flight controls.

What is more, a dedicated “Ski Mode” is purpose-built for skiing, snowboarding and other high-speed snow sports, using enhanced target recognition, user experience adjustments and terrain optimizations to help the X1 PROMAX track athletes’ movement and maintain smooth footage, even on steep or heavily snowy slopes. 

“We’re thrilled to partner with FIS as the official flying-camera partner and bring innovative AI technology to the world of snow sports,” said HOVERAir CEO MQ Wang.

Supporting FIS storytelling at every level

Also able to be used by amateurs on local hills or cross-country trails, thanks to the drones’ pocket size and its weight under regulatory limits, this partnership should support FIS’ vision to engage snow sports’ fans and athletes at every level. 

Further evidence of the synergy between this technology and snow sports was supplied back in January, when the Freeride World Tour 2026 announced that HOVERAir had joined as an official premium supplier. “HOVERAir cameras will help our Freeride athletes capture new angles effortlessly and hands-free, bringing a new level of dynamic storytelling to the mountains,” said FWT Founder and CEO, Nicolas Hale-Woods. 

And as the snow-sports season continues to unfold, with dramatic tussles for Crystal Globes very much in full swing, expect to see more self-flying cameras above FIS events across a host of disciplines. If the enthusiastic response to drone footage at Milano Cortina 2026 is any guide, fans are sure to embrace these new perspectives - and want to create their own.