July 08, 2015 – With summer in full swing, it is the perfect time to catch up with FIS President Gian Franco Kasper to talk about the summer activities and particularly the election of the Host City for the Olympic Winter Games in 2022.

Gian Franco Kasper © Agence Zoom

President Kasper, summer is traditionally a time that the ski world can relax and recharge its batteries, but this summer is proving to be quite busy for you.
GFK: Yes, it is shaping up to be a very short off-season with a lot going on. Naturally, the upcoming IOC Session in Kuala Lumpur (MAS), where the host of the 2022 Winter Olympic Games will be elected, is a major highlight. The Calendar Conference in Varna with the Council meeting was also quite an intensive time, but I believe, together with our Committees, there were some good proposals put forward that are moving our sport in the right direction. As most people have also read in the media, there has also been quite a bit of work involving both the AIOWF (Association of International Olympic Winter Sport Federations) and the changes in SportAccord (Association of all International Sport Federations).

In addition to your role as FIS President, you are also the President of AIOWF, an IOC member and recently you were named the Interim Chairman of the Council of SportAccord, it is a lot of hats for one person to wear.
GFK: It has kept me on my toes this summer to be sure, but there is a lot of overlap between the various organisations, which is beneficial to my work with FIS. The SportAccord position is strictly temporary until the new long-term plan for the organsation can be implemented. The work with the AIOWF and the IOC is particularly important in the upcoming months as the IOC Session nears, but I must say I immensely appreciate collaborating with all the various groups.

It was also recently announced that two new FIS events will join the Olympic Programme in 2018. Can you tell us more about them?
GFK: I was very pleased with the IOC decision to include the Alpine Team Event and Snowboard Big Air into the 2018 Olympic Winter Games programme. In their respective disciplines, both events are favourites among the athletes and have massive appeal with the fans and media. I believe they will make excellent additions to the Olympics and that the IOC made two very good decisions with their inclusion. On the other hand, it was disappointing to have Snowboard PSL removed from the programme, but we knew there was a chance that would happen as it was an event added specifically at the request of the Sochi 2014 Organisers.

This IOC Session will be highlighted with the vote for the 2022 Olympic host, which is a key decision for Winter Sports every four years – how do you perceive the race?
GFK: It is natural that the main headline is the announcement of the 2022 Winter Olympic host and both Candidates, Almaty (KAZ) and Beijing (CHN) offer much promise for the development of the FIS disciplines as well as Winter Sports in general, albeit in different ways. What is true of both candidates is they see the Games in their country as part of a wider development of winter tourism and sporting activity. With the implementation of Olympic Agenda 2020 in December 2014 and important changes to the bidding procedure and the sustainable use of existing facilities, many potential applicants are already discussing potential bids for 2026.

There is also much more on the agenda in Kuala Lumpur. What do you expect at the Session in July?
GFK: Additionally we will also be deciding who will host the 2020 Winter Youth Olympic Games, Lausanne (SUI) or Brasov (ROM). The YOG is also an important event on the winter event calendar. Of particular significance is that this is the first IOC Session after the implementation of Olympic Agenda 2020 which represents President Bach’s dedicated and highly appreciated work to renew the Olympic Movement, and many of the action points are now in full force. It is sure to be a busy week in Kuala Lumpur.

The upcoming 2015/2016 season is the ‘light’ season for FIS with no Olympic Games and instead of four weeks of FIS World Championships there is the four day Ski Flying World Championships on the calendar. Does this change the focus for the season?
GFK: It is far from being an idle season as it is generally this one in the cycle that becomes the most intense in terms of planning, testing and preparing for the next World Championships and Olympics, as well as the spectacular Ski Flying World Championships which is one of my personal favourite events. There’s a saying that ‘after the last World Championships, the next World Championships begin’ and I can’t agree more as this ‘idle’ season lays the ground work for the next three years of intense events.