Foreign skiers crowd Manali slopes
February 6th, 2012 - 6:29 pm ICT by IANSManali (Himachal Pradesh), Feb 6 (IANS) “What a nice ski slope,” remarked Canadian skier John Lee. Lee and his friends are skiing on the Solang slopes near this picturesque tourist resort and are among the 336 participants gathered here for a four-day Alpine Premier League that began Monday.
“It’s really not so crowded (like the slopes in Europe), we are here for the first time,” remarked Aiden, another skier.
According to event organisers, the participants included 12 foreigners from Canada, Switzerland, Finland, Norway and France.
The competitions to be held are slalom, giant slalom, snow-board giant slalom, snow-board cross-country 5-km race for men and women and giant slalom both for junior boys and girls, and men’s veteran (40 years and above).
The championship is organised by a private firm, Ski Himalayas Ropeway Pvt Ltd, in association with local ski clubs and the state tourism department.
The state-run Atal Bihari Vajpayee Institute of Mountaineering and Allied Sports is providing technical assistance to the event.
The Solang slopes have more than three-and-a-half foot snow, Randhir Singh Salhuria, director of mountaineering institute, told IANS.
“In the past two days, the slopes piled up around two feet snow. This time the snow is plentiful. It will stay here till end of the next month,” he added.
Amitabh Sharma, the skiing event organiser, said teams from the Indian Army’s High Altitude Warfare School (HAWS) in Gulmarg, the Indian Air force, Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) and various clubs from Jammu and Kashmir, Uttarakhand and the host state will participate in the championship.
After a gap of seven years, the Winter Games Federation of India allowed the Himachal Pradesh Winter Games Association in 2010 to hold the National Senior Alpine Skiing Championship at Solang.
Besides the event, the mountaineering institute is conducting skiing courses both for professionals and amateurs in Solang. The courses began last month and will continue till the slopes have snow.
The Solang slopes offer a challenging run to both beginners and advanced skiers and are of international standards, said Salhuria.
For newcomers, the institute is conducting basic, intermediate and advanced ski courses at Narkanda, 65 km from Shimla.
Narkanda has shorter and gentler slopes that attract mostly newcomers. The slopes currently have more than two feet of snow.
- Himachal's snowy slopes invite skiers (With Image) - Jan 11, 2012
- Take out your ski boots, snow-clad Himachal slopes are here! - Jan 09, 2011
- Solang has great snow, but lacks professional touch: Skiers - Feb 29, 2012
- Snow-clad slopes make Manali a skiers' paradise - Feb 23, 2011
- Ski championship lures sportspersons in Manali - Feb 18, 2011
- Ski down grassy Himalayan slopes this summer - Mar 15, 2011
- Ropeway opened in Himachal's Solang Valley - Jan 23, 2011
- Adventure Sports takes centre stage in Solang Valley - Feb 10, 2012
- Solang Valley, India's newest destination for adventure sports(With Image) - Feb 18, 2012
- Fresh snowfall drapes Manali in white - Apr 06, 2011
- Skiers back on Himachal's Solang slopes (With Image) - Feb 11, 2010
- Shimla, Manali get more snowfall (Lead) - Feb 26, 2011
- 200 arrive for Special Olympics in Himachal - Feb 15, 2011
- Private Himachal firm to set up ski centre - Apr 01, 2010
- Clouds of uncertainty over Himachal skiing meet - Feb 04, 2010
Tags: alpine skiing, bihari vajpayee, event organiser, foot snow, games association, giant slalom, high altitude, host state, indian air force, indian army, itbp, jammu and kashmir, junior boys, ropeway, ski clubs, ski slope, snow board, state tourism department, tibetan border, uttarakhand