Swiss welcome addition of ski mountaineering as Olympic sport

Ski mountaineering will make its Olympic debut at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan, a decision that bodes well for Switzerland, which has many of the world’s best athletes in this discipline. The Lausanne-based International Olympic Committee (IOC) decided unanimously on Tuesday to add ski mountaineering, which involves carrying lightweight skis up off-piste routes and then skiing down them, to the 15 Olympic winter sports. This list has not changed since snowboarding was introduced at the 1998 Olympics in Nagano. In an effort to maintain interest, the IOC is now giving Olympic host cities the opportunity to offer new disciplines if they are both “spectacular” and “culturally relevant to the host country and beyond”, the IOC said in a statement. However, as an “additional sport” requested by the Italian organisers, there is no guarantee that it will remain an Olympic sport. The ski mountaineering programme in Milan will consist of five new medal events: two men’s events...