Pressure mounts on FIS

Following the open letter sent by 500 athletes, Greenpeace has now joined the call for FIS to take credible action on its carbon footprint and become a leader in climate action.

The Greenpeace letter calls for
“…… the FIS President and Council Members to respond to the demands of so many professional athletes and the climate crisis which, left unchecked, threatens the very existence of winter sports.”
Then full letter text can be found HERE

The FIS response is once again evasive and without concrete action. FIS restates work with Cool Earth on offsetting but provides no information on the size of the forest invested in, the deforestation threats that the forest faces (essential to prove the additionality of the offsets) or even the amount spent by FIS on this programme. FIS restate its claim of being a signatory of the UN Sports for Climate Action Framework despite clearly not meeting the requirements, or featuring on the UN website as a signatory. And perhaps most concerning; FIS again talks about the efforts it makes in the reduction of emissions from events. However, a report from the World Championships in Courchevel 2023 was only able to reach the recognised sustainability standard ISO 20121 by excluding all FIS activities from the accreditation process. It is clear that FIS is a barrier to the accreditation of sustainable events rather than the champion it claims to be.

Key decisions around the next race season will be made at this year’s FIS Spring Congress held online during May and voted on by participating National Federations. POW along with members of its Brand Alliance Atomic, Picture and Nidecker (whose athletes are prominent in FIS competitions) and the instigator of the athlete letter Julian Schutter has written to each voting federation asking the following:

With the spring congress approaching we urge you to consider climate and sustainability first and foremost when voting. Whether on the expansion to new areas, the running of events, or the scheduling of the race calendar, the impact on climate and therefore the future of the sport should be the prime consideration in the decision-making process.
The full letter text can be found HERE

At POW we sincerely hope that the Federations voting at the congress can make the decisions necessary for FIS to take the bold action required and become a global leader in positive climate action.

Image: Wolfgang Moroder