Schladming Planai finish stadium: photo credit GEPA

Who is skiing, when and how to watch the Schladming slalom

Before Schladming built the new 2013 FIS Alpine World Championships Planai Stadium, it was frightening to be part of general admission. The considerable consumption of alcohol was part of the problem. Also, the tightly packed fans in the middle had no control over the direction they moved. If the crowd moved forward, back, left, or right, they moved in the same direction. If you needed to use the restroom, it was impossible until the fans dispersed after the race. 

After they built the new stadium, the Schladming race became civilized. It is now the most sophisticated race arena on tour. The Planai finish stadium is a beautiful facility that offers an amazing experience for both fans and competitors. Also, the Schladming event is usually the best-attended race on the slalom calendar.

Take note the Schladming night races will occur when the sun is up in North America.

Snow Conditions

The Sunday Kitzbühel race offered perfect race conditions. Hopefully, the same will be said about the Schladming event. The Planai race crew watered the entire slope, but then fresh snow fell and absorbed much of the surface water. It created a fragile hard surface that was only a few centimeters thick. The solution was to rewater using injection bars. Notably, the FIS returned Sunday evening after the Kitzbühel race to evaluate the outcome.

Today when asked about conditions, the FIS answer was simple, “Perfect, icy.” It is important to know that the FIS doesn’t think it is ever too icy for men’s slalom. However, that means a scary night for the coaches. But ice also provides an opportunity for later bib numbers who are skiing well, a fair chance to qualify.

One of the issues this year is that a GS on Wednesday night will follow the slalom. The race that was scheduled for Garmisch-Partenkirchen is now a Wednesday Schladming night GS. Due to the surface deterioration caused by a slalom, it is usually the last event. To mitigate the issue, the plan is to set the higher traffic first run slalom on the skier’s left to avoid most of the GS course. 

North American absence

How to watch the Sunday, March 17th Men’s Saalbach World Cup Finals Slalom

The first run will begin at 11:45 am Eastern Time and 8:45 am on the West Coast. The second run will start at 2:45 pm Eastern Time and 11:45 pm on the West Coast.

In the USA, the Schladming slalom can be viewed live and replayed on Peacock TV. Peacock TV requires a subscription.

In Canada, World Cup content is available on CBC sports

The First run start list for the January 24th Schladming night World Cup SL and program

Program for Sunday, January 24th, Schladming night SL