FIS Confirms 2012 World Cup Dates: Olympic tests, City Events and U.S. Stops Highlight Schedule

Following calendar meetings last week in Portoroz, Slovenia, the International Ski Federation (FIS) has confirmed the World Cup schedules across all disciplines for the 2012 season.

Five U.S. resorts were among those confirmed Monday. Aspen, Beaver Creek and Telluride, Colo., along with Deer Valley Resort in Utah and Lake Placid, NY will continue as hosts for the sports’ premier events.
 
The Audi FIS Alpine World Cup will return to Aspen Nov. 26-27 for a women’s giant slalom and slalom. The following weekend, action continues on the Birds of Prey course in Beaver Creek with a Dec. 2-4 men’s downhill, super G and giant slalom. Vail/Beaver Creek will be the site of the 2015 FIS Alpine World Ski Championships.

Freestyle returns to perennial hosts Lake Placid Jan. 19-21 and Deer Valley Feb. 2-4. The Lake Placid schedule will feature a pair of night aerials events under the lights plus daytime moguls. Deer Valley will showcase night aerials and dual moguls plus daytime moguls. Deer Valley was the site of last year’s FIS Freestyle World Ski Championships.

Previously planned tech races in Japan were canceled due to the recent natural disasters in the island country. As a result, additional races in Asia were called off to avoid excessive travel. Those events will be replaced by races in Crans-Montana and Bansko.

A pair of parallel, city events are also on the forecast as the tour will make a second stop in Munich’s Olympic park on January 1 and again in downtown Moscow February 21. Both city events will bring the men’s and women’s tours together for exciting, head-to-head racing.

Following successful Europa Cup test events in Sochi last season, the World Cup men and women will take turns testing the Olympic downhill and super combined venues on consecutive weekends in late February. 

The Audi FIS Alpine World Cup will open Oct. 22-23 with the traditional glacier races in Soelden, Austria and close with World Cup Finals in Schladming, Austria, site of the 2013 World Championships.

Freestyle will open with moguls in Ruka, Finland Dec. 10. Aerials will open Jan. 14 in Mont Gabriel, PQ. Skicross begins Dec. 17 in San Candido, Italy. The final freestyle schedule will be finalized later to accommodate the inclusion of halfpipe skiing, one of the newest Olympic disciplines.
 
Nordic combined opens Nov. 25-26 in Kuusamo, Finland and is back to a traditionally full schedule after a significant decrease in the number of World Cups last year during the World Championship season.

Cross country opens Nov. 19-20 in Beitostolen, Norway with Kikkan Randall (Anchorage) seeking to move up from her third place season long finish in sprint last year. The opening sprint is a week later in Kuusamo. Finland.

FIS WORLD CUP SCHEDULES

Audi FIS Alpine World Cup
https://www.fis-ski.com/data/document/1112men_june11.pdf
https://www.fis-ski.com/data/document/1112ladies_june11.pdf

FIS Cross Country World Cup
https://www.fis-ski.com/data/document/cal-cc11-12.pdf

FIS Freestyle World Cup
Pending FIS Council Approval

DKB FIS Nordic Combined World Cup
https://www.fis-ski.com/data/document/encl5-wc-calendar2011-12.pdf

Bauhaus FIS Men’s Ski Jumping World Cup
https://www.fis-ski.com/data/document/wc_calendar_jp11-12-men3.pdf

FIS Women’s Ski Jumping World Cup
https://www.fis-ski.com/data/document/wc_calendar_jp-ladies-11-125.pdf

LG FIS Snowboard World Cup
Pending FIS Council Approval