The fact that this was even up for discussion was a surprise to me. Snowboarding and skiing may have some similarities and crossover, but they remain two different sports and judging them the same is an insult to both sides.
The FIS had proposed to use the same judges for the freeski/snowboard events at the 2014 Olympics to save money. Seems kind of crazy that when billions of dollars are spent preparing a venue, building stadiums, half pipes, entire ski resorts, highways, housing, arenas, etc. that the couple hundred dollars a day it would take to have a few extra judges on staff is seen as an expense they can cut corners on.Â
I thought this was a joke when I first read about it but apparently the proposition was nixed at the International Ski Federation’s (FIS) biannual Congress in South Korea last week.
It’s a good thing this got sorted, because all we need is more pissed off skiers and snowboarders.
