Didier Défago: “We are clearly on the right track”

The Swiss crowd thrilled to the exploits of Malorie Blanc and Franjo von Allmen, who both triumphed in the Audi FIS Alpine Ski World Cup races in Crans-Montana this weekend. The spectacle lived up to expectations, to the delight of nearly 20,000 fans who gathered along and at the foot of the Nationale slope and the Mont Lachaux slope.

One year ahead of the FIS Alpine World Ski Championships, the challenge was significant for the organisers this year, with two slopes to prepare simultaneously for this full-scale rehearsal. But the mission was successfully accomplished by Didier Défago, CEO of the competitions, and his teams. Interview.

Didier Défago, what is your overall assessment of these three days of competition, between the cancellation of the women’s downhill and the successful races this weekend?

Overall, it’s a positive assessment. Conditions were difficult during the week, but that’s part of the game. I think we were able to observe a number of organisational aspects. And above all, we finish with two strong highlights, two fantastic races and two Swiss victories. I think that’s ideal to launch what comes next, to launch the World Championships. It’s positive and it also brings a bit of comfort to the teams after the events of the beginning of the year. All of this really helps highlight the work they’ve done.

What points still need to be improved ahead of the 2027 World Championships?

We’ve already taken a big step forward compared to last year. On the women’s side, on the Mont Lachaux slope, we saw that snow preparation was very good. The same applies to the men. For me, on the Nationale slope, there is still some potential, particularly in terms of the level of difficulty. We can still improve it. But we are clearly on the right track.

What are the next areas of focus?

What’s important now is to carry out a thorough debrief with the FIS and with all the different collaborators. We’ll need to analyse what worked well from an organisational point of view and identify the points to improve. We must also remember that the configuration of a finish area is different for major events like the FIS Alpine World Ski Championships. Meetings have already taken place this week with the International Federation to identify needs based on the available space. But one thing is certain, in terms of overall layout and basic set-up, we are on the right path. This gives us a very solid additional foundation for next year.

How do you analyse the management of two slopes simultaneously?

It was a major challenge this year, particularly in terms of coordination with the lift company and with the two slope teams, who had to divide the work differently compared to previous years. Today, everyone clearly knows what they need to focus on. The big positive point is that, in terms of slope preparation timing, we are exactly on the same schedule as we will be next year. We know precisely which time windows to use, when to intervene and which stage we need to be at during preparation. The debrief will allow us to define this in very precise terms.