Important Boost For The Future Of The Snow Sports In Spain

The Spanish National Ski Association (RFEDI) met with directors of the ski and mountain resorts of Spain (ATUDEM), the heads of public administrations, snow industry agents and presidents of the regional federations to propose coordinated actions for the future, including the presentation of a strategic plan for the international competitions to be hosted in Spain in the coming years, as well as the long-term objective of realising the Olympic project of the Pyrenees-Barcelona 2030.

The event, which was held at the federation's headquarters in Madrid, was attended by President May Peus España, who was accompanied at the speaker's table by FIS Council Member Eduardo Valenzuela, Carlos Gascón (Superior Council of Sports, Consejo Superior de Deportes) and María José López (ATUDEM). 

In a comprehensive presentation with a large amount of data from FIANET and the industry organisations of the leading snow sport countries, he analysed the weaknesses and strengths of the Spanish context regarding stations, industry and brands, training and ski schools. His presentation was based on success stories from countries such as the United States, Austria and France, where organisations in the sports and winter tourism sector are very powerful and have even managed to establish a winter holiday like the White Week, which has existed fleetingly in some Spanish autonomies as well.

A big goal for Valenzuela was, "to achieve common solutions and a shared calendar to propose to FIS, with a sports and communication strategy. It should be clear that not only competitive sports are represented, but also an industry that structures the mountain valleys, creating wealth for more than a century now".

The president of RFEDI, May Peus, commented at the end of the meeting that he was "very happy with the response as well as the result of the RFEDI initiative that has served to analyse the situation of the sector and uncover joint action lines between the touristic part of the snow industry and the competitive one. Peus explained that the Strategic Plan for Snow Sports in Spain, which is being applied since 2016, considers the Spainsnow brand as an umbrella that brings together the entire sector both in its tourism and sports aspects.