Author: admin

(March 2020)

A lot of Chinese first-time skiers still have a negative initial experience on snow as China is facing a severe shortage of qualified ski instructors. Without qualified ski instructors, China is running a high risk of missing its ambitious targets to become a ski-nation.

On behalf of the Austrian Federal Ministry of Digital and Economic Affairs (BMDW) the Austrian Economic Chambers (WKO)
together with the Austrian SKI Association
initiated a ski instructor education program to give the development of wintersport in China a boost.

The Austrian officials under the guidance of the former Minister of Digitalisation and Economy, Mrs. Margarete Schramböck, are committed to strongly support ski education in China and help to overcome the shortage of ski instructors for the benefits of both countries. Chinese ski instructors, who are educated by Austrian specialists, are considered great ambassadors for the Austrian lifestyle in China.

In order to provide an effective solution, Austrian officials contacted Snow51  a privately-owned Austrian-Sino joint venture based ski hub in Shanghai and engaged it in the field of ski education for Chinese winter sport fans.

Today, Snow51 is the only institution in China able to educate ski instructors according to the highest global standards. The teaching content as well as the methodology are based on the Austrian official standards, but are specifically adapted for the needs of the Chinese market.

The two Austrian partners of Snow51, Schild Skiracing Gmbh and SnowHowChina, have the official mandate of the Austrian Ski and Snowboard Association (Snowsport Austria) for ski instructor education in China.

Snow51 is able to educate up to 1,000 Chinese ski instructors until the start of the 2022 Winter Olympics at a reasonable cost. 1,000 highly educated ski instructors will be a significant help to the Chinese ambition of establishing alpine skiing in the Middle Kingdom.

The first group of Chinese instructors has already passed the ski education training in fall/winter 2019 and received an “Austria Snowsport Education” certificate.

THE SUPPORTERS

• The Province of Tirol

• The Olympic host city of Innsbruck

• The Austrian Ski Industry (Atomic, Head, Blizzard, Fischer)

• The Austrian Wintersport Industry (a.o. Doppelmayr, Technoalpin, Wintersteiger, Pistenbully)

• And many others

THRILLING FIVE-DAY SWISS ALPINE EXPERIENCE

January 2020. Chinese winter sports enthusiasts recently experienced the thrill, excitement and adrenalin rush of a personal encounter with many things the Swiss hold dear. In a five-day excursion to one of Europe’s most beautiful ski area, the Jungfrau Ski Region, they encountered a passion for the mountain, the thrill of watching a World Cup ski race and participating in their own event, the richness and diversity of leisure and sport activities available in the Alps, and traditional Swiss hospitality at its best.

The SINA CUP raised an impressive interest on various Chines media channels: More than 100 Million Clicks/Views have been generated.

The participants experienced the breathtaking classic ski area, with some 102 km of groomed pistes, also the home to the world-famous Lauberhorn downhill race. They were transported high up to the Jungfraujoch, known as “The Top of Europe” where at 3,454 meters it offers an unforgettable mountain and glacier panorama.

They  enjoyed the First cliff walk in the sunny First ski area as much as  ice skating through a winter wonderland in Interlaken.

The Sina Weibo World Cup Race was adrenalin pure when the visitors were transported to Klein Scheidegg for their chance to race like the champions in the Sina Weibo Ski Cup Race, the first time the race has ever been held in the Swiss Alps.  The SINA Cup has been staging events across 13 provinces in China since November 2018, all aimed at both attracting more people to snow and ice sports, and improving the general physical fitness of the Chinese population.

On their last day in Wengen it was time for the guests to experience the thrills of what lies ahead of them when world-class ski racers compete in the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics when they had the opportunity to watch the 90^th International Lauberhorn Race, the classic Combination event of downhill and slalom. The day was made more spectacular by a personal meeting with multi ski and Olympic World Champion Andi Welzel , and a Flight Show by Patroulle Suesse.

Top Brand Skiing Equipment
Participants were supplied with ski equipment (skis, ski gear, helmets, and gloves) from Atomic, the traditional Austrian ski manufacturer and technological pioneer in the ski sports industry. To ensure they were comfortable and protected from the winter temperatures and weather, Sina Cup guests were all wrapped up in Descente Coats.

When Sina Sports, China’s leading online sports provider and Sina/Weibo’s Alpine partner SnowHow China brought the Sina Ski Cup back to the Alps recently, participants experienced so much more than ski racing. The Austrian SINA CUP in Sölden and Innsbruck and its surrounding has reached an incredible media outreach of more than 100 million clicks and views in China and is therefore a great initiative to promote Alpine destinations and companies to a Chinese audience.

In a five day tour through some of Austria’s most spectacular alpine areas, they were able to enjoy a broad range of events that also gave them a taste of cultures and customs throughout this unique mountain region. The second AUSTRIA SINA CUP was again hosted by the expansive ski area of Sölden and Innsbruck, the beautiful Tyrolean capital with its surrounding. During their time in the Ötztal they enjoyed staying at the Hotel AQUA DOME, which is one of the region’s real “WOW’ hotels. Atomic supported the SINA Cup participants with best ski, the Italian ski fashion brand Vist provided them great ski outfits. While at Sölden guests had the opportunity to experience the latest ropeway engineer technology from Doppelmayr, which was responsible for the design, manufacture and installation of the Gaislachkogel Gondola in Sölden,

Sina Cup guests, both beginner, and advanced skiers got their first taste of the slopes immediately after their arrival at the expansive ski area of Sölden with a beginner lesson. On day two, guests rode the gondola high up to the over 3,000m Gaislachkogel to enjoy a unique cinematic installation, a tribute to the world of James Bond. It was adrenalin time for the guests on the third day with an opportunity to compete in the Sina Ski Cup after warming up on the slopes in the morning. Winners were rewarded at the Race Award ceremony in the afternoon.

The fourth day saw the guests move on to Axamer Lizum, Innsbruck, a venue twice chosen for the skiing competitions at the Olympic Winter Games, and where they had the opportunity to ski the famed Olympic course. As a special highlight the participants has been offered go on the Olympic Bobsleigh Igls and experience themselves what makes this exciting winter sport so fascinating. 
The final day of the tour saw guests take a guided tour of Innsbruck’s charming, 800-year-old Old Town quarter before visiting the famed Bergisel Ski Jump, a spectacular world-class facility that was conceived by star architect Zaha Hadid.

When Sina Sports, China’s premier online sport provider in china and its Alpine partner SnowHow China took its Sina Cup Alpine Ski Open to the Alps recently, participants experienced so much more than ski racing.

The SINA Cup has been staging events across 13 provinces in China since November 2018, all aimed at both attracting more people to snow and ice sports, and improving the general physical fitness of the Chinese population.

The SINA Cup signaled the creation of a cultural bridge between the Alps, as the cradle of winter sports, and China, as a major upcoming winter sports nation.

Participants were supported by the main SINA CUP sponsors including representatives from the spectacular glacier ski area of Sölden; from Innsbruck, the beautiful Tyrolean capital, from Atomic and  Schöffel.