Jr. Ski Patrol. Photo: Brandon Sancez

ITALY — The International Ski Federation (FIS) and the The International Federation of Ski Patrollers (FIPS) have teamed up for the last four years to enhance snow sports safety amongst youth around the world. To achieve this goal, a kids snow safety course was developed and has now been successfully tested.

This winter’s course, known as the “Junior Ski Patrol”, merged key mountain safety fundamentals such as avalanche safety, CPR and first aid with fun. The test course was carried out in Piancavallo Ski Resort with the assistance of the local ski patrol team.

To ensure inclusivity, children with special needs were invited to participate. The engagement of this group was particularly successful.

“We are really happy with the results of the tests. Kids have a different way of learning to adults. It is imperative that we keep it fun and light while still being informative. This way the children understand easier and remember for longer” said Luca Sardelli, course developer, in a statement.
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The next step after the test is to make the course accessible for patrol teams around the world. To do this, FIS will be working with FIPS to create a SnowKidz Cookbook dedicated to the safety course. Moreover physical items will be developed which can then be obtained by patrol teams to make implementation of the course easier.

A Park City program, in alignment with FIS’s, has been put into play and into action, hosted at Deer Valley, and Park City High School offers students a class which teaches the introductory practices of outdoor wilderness medical rescue intervention.