The World Cup may come to Killington!
If accepted, it would be the first time The World Cup has been hosted on the east coast since 1991
KILLINGTON — Killington has received preliminary approval to host the 2016 Audi FIS Woman’s Ski World Cup next year over Thanksgiving weekend (2016). Among the athletes could be U.S. Ski Team superstars Julia Mancuso, Mikaela Shiffrin and Lindsey Vonn. The proposed November, 2016 World Cup would include women’s giant slalom and slalom races. If accepted by FIS, the dates would be Nov. 26-27, 2016, Thanksgiving Weekend. The race would fill the weekend traditionally hosted in Aspen during the season in which the Colorado resort is holding the World Cup Finals in March, 2017. The final confirmation will not occur until mid-December when the FIS Site Selection Committee meets and affirms the choice to host the event at Killington.
This is a major event that will require a lot of resources and the resort will need everyone’s help galvanizing the community support to pull off various aspects of the event such as team housing, hospitality, and more.
“Hosting a World Cup at Killington is an amazing opportunity for the resort and community and will boost international name recognition and hopefully drive more business from many new destinations in future years,” said Killington Resort President Mike Solimano.
In a final site inspection Sept. 23, FIS Women’s World Cup Tour Director Atle Skaardal visited Killington and gave a positive report, which encouraged the USSA to move forward in the process. The bid will be submitted to FIS at its fall meetings in Zurich that run through Saturday. It is anticipated that the bid will then be put onto the draft 2016-17 World Cup calendar that will be finalized next June.
It would be the first World Cup in the eastern USA since 1991 when the U.S. Ski Team’s Julie Parisien won the giant slalom at Waterville Valley, N.H.
“An eastern World Cup will have great impact on our sport by bringing the best ski racers in the world close to our largest population of USSA members and fans,” said USSA President and CEO Tiger Shaw. “Powdr, Corp. has always been a strong partner for the USSA and we have confidence that Killington is well suited to produce an exceptional early season World Cup.”
The USSA has had a long relationship with Powdr, Corp. producing World Cup and Grand Prix events at Copper Mountain and Park City Mountain Resort. Killington has been a strong venue in alpine ski racing as a regular host to FIS Cup and USSA races.
“Killington is one of the premier resorts in the country and close to major eastern metropolitan markets,” said Powdr CEO John Cumming. “Powdr has produced World Cup events in the past at other resorts in our portfolio and has significant experience executing large-scale races such as the Audi FIS Ski World Cup.”
As a FIS World Cup, the event would be broadcast worldwide to over 60 nations, along with national broadcast coverage across America. The event is anticipated to bring significant economic impact to the state of Vermont, which other U.S. World Cups have seen extend to $15-20 million.
“Killington is an ideal venue for World Cup skiing’s return to the East Coast, and to be considered for this event is a tremendous honor and opportunity for Killington and the surrounding community,” Solimano added. “We plan to hold the race on our Superstar trail, located adjacent to the K-1 Express Gondola and base area. Snowmaking infrastructure on this trail received significant upgrades this summer, and this November race will allow us to showcase our world-class snowmaking system. Killington is thrilled to represent the entire state of Vermont to the international ski market.”
