The start of the Olympic ski season has been overshadowed by an intensifying debate over training course safety, just five months before the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan-Cortina. Concerns have surged following a series of fatal accidents and mounting criticism from elite skiers about inadequate safety standards on training slopes worldwide.
Mikaela Shiffrin Leads Renewed Safety Discussion
American skiing superstar Mikaela Shiffrin, who suffered a horrific crash last year that caused severe abdominal injuries, has become one of the most vocal advocates for reform. The two-time Olympic champion returned to training only after months of recovery and reflection — and with a sharper awareness of the hazards many athletes face daily.
“When I came back from injury, I was aware of every hole, every fence, every tree,” said Shiffrin. “We often train in conditions where the variables are too many to control. Sometimes you have to ask: is this risk acceptable, or is it unnecessarily dangerous?”
Shiffrin, who has won a record 101 World Cup races, has spoken openly about the post-traumatic stress she experienced after her crash and warned against the normalization of life-threatening risks in the sport.
“We can’t just accept that danger is part of the sport and move on,” she said. “We have to find ways to minimize it wherever possible.”
Tragedy Sparks Calls for Reform
The latest outcry was triggered by the death of Matteo Franzoso, a promising 25-year-old Italian skier who crashed during preseason training in La Parva, Chile. Franzoso broke through two safety fences and struck a wooden barrier outside the course, suffering fatal head injuries.
He became the third young Italian skier to die in less than a year, following other tragic incidents involving athletes in both Italy and France.
French World Cup star Alexis Pinturault joined the chorus of concern, saying, “We are training in many places that are not really safe — that’s 100 percent true.”
Sofia Goggia: “Ski Racing Is Like F1 or MotoGP”
Italy’s Sofia Goggia, the 2018 Olympic downhill champion, compared the sport to motorsport for its speed and inherent risk. “At a high level, it’s like F1 or MotoGP,” she said. “We reach speeds of 80-
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