New research shows climate change threatening the future of Winter Olympics and all snow sports

Climate change is threatening the Winter Olympics and the future of snow sports by making conditions much more dangerous for athletes and participants, experts have warned in a report published a week before the 2022 Winter Games in Beijing.

The Games, which start on 4th February, will be the first Winter Olympics to use almost 100% artificial snow, deploying more than 100 snow generators and 300 snow cannons, working flat out to cover the ski slopes.

Written by researchers from the sport ecology group at Loughborough University in England and the Protect Our Winters environment group, the report states "this is not only energy- and water-intensive, frequently using chemicals to slow (any) melt, but also delivers a surface that many competitors say is unpredictable and potentially dangerous," the researchers said.

The Beijing Winter Olympics Organising Committee has issued a sustainability report saying the Games' "smart snow-making system" could use 20% less water than traditional methods.

Games organisers have also sought to counter fears that the events will put pressure on local water supplies by saying they will rely on mountain runoff and rainfall collected during the summer for their snowmaking.

The research noted that climate change meant natural snow was becoming less plentiful in many regions of the world, and was reducing the amount of water available for artificial snow, putting the global snow sports industry at risk.

It advised "navigating erratic snow seasons - and rapid melt at low-level resorts - are now the norm for many competitors.

"The risk is clear: Man-made warming is threatening the long-term future of winter sports. It is also reducing the number of climatically suitable host venues for the Winter Olympiad."

Of the 21 venues used for the Winter Olympics since the French resort of Chamonix hosted the first Games in 1924, researchers estimate that, by 2050, only 10 will have the "climate suitability" and natural snowfall levels to host an event.

Chamonix is now rated "high risk", along with venues in Norway, France and Austria, while Vancouver in Canada, Sochi in Russia and Squaw Valley in the United States are deemed "unreliable".

Reuters

Image: Snowboarder at the Falls Creek Terrain Park. Credit: Falls Creek.