Skiers from across Hertfordshire competed in the first ever School Games ski race, hosted at The Snow Centre in Hemel Hempstead last week. This entry level event aimed to introduce ski racing and the competitive side of snow sports to new participants, as part of the School Games programme.

The event was organised by Snowsport England in partnership with the Herts School Games Organising Committee and Herts Sports Partnership. A fantastic afternoon brought together 66 students from 18 state and independent schools for some hard-fought competitive races. Some competitors were racing Slalom and Giant Slalom styles for the very first time, facing the -3o conditions needed to stop the artificially made snow from melting.

The racers were cheered on by their team managers and team mates to complete the course in the fastest time they could. Jacqui Akins of Hemel Ski Club provided some highly entertaining commentary allowing everyone to keep up with the constantly changing positions.

The competition was closely fought between the six participating school partnership teams. Team Dacorum came out on top, winning the overall team prize for the fastest combined times, with the Harpenden & St Albans team only five seconds behind! The individual winners were decided by the combined fastest slalom and giant slalom times. Congratulations to Key Stage 2 winners Rosie Bell, Dacorum and Matthew Cox, Three Rivers; Key Stage 3 winners Emily Dean, Dacorum  and Cameraon Burnett, Harpenden & St Albans and Key Stage 4  winners Jane Denham and Reece Cook, both from North East Herts.

Ladies and Mens Individual Results.pdf

Overall Partnership Team Results.pdf

Susie Moore, Sports Development Officer for Snowsport England commented:

“It is fantastic to have snowsport included within the School Games programme for the first time. Herts Sports Partnership, the Hertfordshire School Games Organising Committee and The Snow Centre have all been very supportive, making this pilot event a huge success.”

Jan Wood the School Games Co-ordinator for the North East Herts Partnership commented:

“This event is a fantastic opportunity for those who have never been part of a school team before to get involved and excel in competitive skiing.”

Andrea Grant who co-ordinated and organised the volunteer race crew stated:

 ‘The event went extremely well and all the racers enjoyed themselves. Special thanks must go out to all the volunteers who gave up their time to support the competition - without them the event wouldn’t have been possible.” 

The School Games is a national Olympic legacy programme aiming to motivate and inspire millions of young people across the country to take part in more competitive school sport.