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Markus Wasmeier (59) took part in 155 World Championship races (nine victories) from 1984 to 1994, was Olympic champion twice and World champion once.
Almost 30 years after his retirement, Wasmeier closely follows the World Ski Championships. And now criticizes the FIS. The reason? He doesn’t like the way the World Ski Federation is handling the issues of climate change and sustainability. “I don’t think the FIS is thinking about ecological matters,” he told the German news agency DPA.
“What’s this back and forth about?”
FIS chairman Johan Eliasch (61), who has been in power since the summer of 2021, is also starting to lose his fat. “He doesn’t check anything,” says Wasmeier. “Just pure chaos.” The design of the race calendar in particular is a thorn in his side.
The start of the season in October and the two trips for the men to the USA (Beaver Creek in November and Palisades Tahoe and Aspen in February/March) do not suit him at all. “What is this back and forth about?” Wasmeier wonders. “Eliasch drives the whole thing against the wall.” He is in favor of the start of the season being postponed.
Open letter from athletes
Wasmeier is not the first to criticize Eliasch and his work. Swiss ski president Urs Lehmann (54) agrees. The men traveled abroad twice last season. In November, Lehmann said in a Blick interview, “This is unparalleled misplanning and also ecological nonsense in these times.”
In addition, some 150 athletes – including Mikaela Shiffrin (28) and Aleksander Aamodt Kilde (30) – wrote an open letter to the FIS calling for more efforts to protect the environment.
So far the response is not as desired. The FIS defended itself against the criticism, stressing in a statement that sustainability is a priority in everything it does. Eliasch’s illusions say otherwise. He has already talked about regular races in China from the 2024/25 season or indoor races in the summer. (beer)
Source : Blick
I’m Emma Jack, a news website author at 24 News Reporters. I have been in the industry for over five years and it has been an incredible journey so far. I specialize in sports reporting and am highly knowledgeable about the latest trends and developments in this field.
