Preparations for the Olympic Winter Games in 2018 took a major step forward last weekend with the Audi FIS Ski World Cup speed events in Jeongseon (KOR), which served as the first official test events for all sports on the Olympic Winter Games programme. The men raced a downhill and super-G on 6^th-7^th February 2017, offering the racers a first glimpse of the Olympic course.

Overall, the racers and teams were happy with the new slope, course conditions and organisation of the events.

The 2857-meter course was designed by Bernhard Russi, featuring four large jumps and long, sweeping turns.

The competitions were attended by IOC Coordination Commission Chair Gunilla Lindberg and PyeongChang 2018 President Cho Yang-Ho in addition to the FIS President Gian Franco Kasper and FIS Secretary General Sarah Lewis.

Following the races, FIS extended congratulations to Cho and his team for their commitment and perseverance with preparations in staging the events.

“We had doubts in November whether the races could be pulled off due to delays with construction of the gondola and snow-making installations, but PyeongChang 2018 has shown that it can deliver. We have an excellent downhill course according to the athletes and coaches. It’s a beauty and a downhill that is really made for the Olympics,” Kasper said.

“It was a great event, in fact it was a historic event for Korea and the international sports community. This past weekend, we showed the world that we can deliver, and deliver well on our promises to host the world’s best athletes in Korea. With the beginning of our test events, POCOG has moved into the operational phase of Games preparation. During the remaining two years, operations will be improved through close cooperation with the IOC, IFs and various client groups to make sure everything is ready”, Cho said.

Sarah Lewis added: “In addition to carrying out the first activity on the race and training courses, POCOG gained huge experience in many functions, including transportation, accommodation and meals, accreditation and many more areas besides, which was highly valuable. The collaboration between the PyeongChang 2018 Organisers and FIS is working very well.”