Third IPC European Para Snow Sport Youth Circuit

Germany, Nov 15, 2013: More than 50 youngsters with an impairment are to take their next step in becoming elite winter sport athletes when the third IPC European Para Snow Sport Youth Circuit of 2013 starts in Landgraaf, the Netherlands, from Sunday (17 November) until Wednesday (20 November).

Supported by the Agitos Foundation, 10-17 year-olds from five countries will attend a camp where they will learn and practice the skills they need for alpine skiing, snowboarding and Nordic skiing. They will also attend workshops on anti-doping, whilst their coaches will take sessions on sport psychology.

Organised by the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) with funding from the European Union, the 18 month long IPC European Para Snow Sport Youth Circuit takes in some of the best destinations for skiing in Europe. At January’s first camp, attendees enjoyed the same slopes as the 2013 IPC Alpine Skiing World Championships in La Molina, Spain.

Sylvana Mestre, Chair of the IPC Alpine Skiing Sport Technical Committee, said: “After the first two camps in Spain and Slovenia this year, we can be confident that this project is an incredible success.

“The first youth camp we organised of any sort was in 2006 in Deux Alps and graduates have included World and Paralympic champions.

“We will not stop here. As well as continuing to invest in the development of alpine skiing, we have further projects in the pipeline for the 2014-2015 season, so that more young people who have been inspired by their idols at the 2014 Sochi Paralympic Winter Games can aim for the same success.”

Medals for the 2013-14 circuit are being provided free of charge by Palkinto Tukku.

In 2014, attendees from Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Slovenia and Spain will move to Germany’s Ski Area Gotschen in Bischofwiesen and the fifth and final camp of the European Para Snow Sport Youth Circuit will be staged in Sestriere, Italy, the resort which staged the 2011 IPC Alpine Skiing World Championships.

Throughout the circuit, which also involves the European Paralympic Committee, results and rankings from each event will be published at http://www.paralympic.org/youth-snow-circuit.

The remaining events for the IPC European Para Snow Sport Youth Circuit is as follows:

17-21 November 2013: Landgraaf, the Netherlands

5-9 January 2014: Ski Area Gotschen in Bischofwiesen, Germany

23-27 March 2014: Sestriere, Italy TBC. —- IPC