December 26, 2010 – Eurosport and the International Ski Federation (FIS) have reached an agreement for the upcoming FIS Tour de Ski. Eurosport will be an official partner of the FIS Tour de Ski, and will host the official team presentation held on 30th December in Oberhof. Eurosport will broadcast all stages of the Tour LIVE, reaching 240 million viewers in 20 different languages across 59 countries.

The fifth edition of the Tour de Ski takes place from 31st December to 9th January and leads from Oberhof via Oberstdorf (GER) and Toblach (ITA) to Val di Fiemme (ITA). The ten-day tour covers eight competitions in both techniques and in all Cross-Country events across almost all distances.

Exciting races, the spectacular 3,7 km climb to “Alpe Cermis” at the final stage in Val di Fiemme and over 800,000 Euro prize money make the FIS Tour de Ski one of the first highlight of this year’s Cross-Country season both for athletes and viewers.

The tour starts on New Year’s Eve with the prolog (ladies 2,5km and men 3,7km). Eurosport will feature live broadcasts of all races.

Eurosport will promote the event across its multimedia platform and is organizing viewer competitions in Germany, Poland and Italy. Cross-Country fans can win a weekend trip for two to the final of this years’ Tour de Ski in Val di Fiemme (ITA), including VIP access to the competition venue and a private behind-the-scenes tour with Jürg Capol, FIS Race Director Cross-Country.

Furthermore, Eurosport offers ambitious amateur cross-country skiers the chance, to make a start on the “Rampa con i Campioni”. This race for everyone to experience the final climb is offered for the first time.

Jürg Capol, FIS Race Director Cross-Country, explains: “We are delighted that Eurosport is once again one of our partners for the Viessmann FIS Tour de Ski performance by Craft Sportswear. Our international partnership for mutual promotional activities, which involves Poland and Italy besides Germany for the first time, clearly shows the high value the FIS Tour de Ski has reached. This unique event will not only be experienced by viewers on site but also by millions of viewers across Europe through Eurosport’s high-quality broadcasting.”

“Nordic skiing has always been very popular among Eurosport viewers and we will broadcast 120 hours from this year’s FIS Cross-Country World Cup on Eurosport and Eurosport 2. The Tour de Ski has established itself as an important sport highlight along with the International Four-Hills-Tournament, and we are very happy to present this event to our viewers”, says Werner Starz, Director Marketing and Communication at Eurosport Media GmbH in Munich.

For all Eurosport Tour de Ski transmission times click HE