GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – Sarah Burke, 29-year-old Canadian freestyle ski champion, died Thursday 19 January at the University of Utah hospital where she was taken following an accident during training near Salt Lake City a week earlier. Burke had won numerous gold medals in the past five years and CNN reports that she “is considered a pioneer of freestyle skiing and was a major force in getting the ski halfpipe event added to the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi”.
The accident occurred as she was doing a superpipe training run. In a fall after making her jump, she tore one of the main arteries that supply blood to the brainstem and the rupture sent her into cardiac arrest. She was without a pulse and spontaneous breathing while the CPR emergency team worked on her at the site and after being taken to the hospital she had surgery 11 January. The surgery was successful in repairing the artery, but she sustained irreversible brain damage in the minutes following the accident and this ultimately caused her death Thursday, according to the skier’s publicist.
In accordance with Burke’s wishes, reports CBC, her organs were donated to others.
Burke married another freestyle skier, Rory , in October 2010 in British Columbia, Canada.
Links to other sites: AP, CBC, CNN, Ski Channel, Vancouver Sun
News video, ABC
Wedding video, Sarah Burke and Rory Bushfield
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – Heavyweight champion boxer Joe Frazier is dead, age 67, following a one-month battle with liver cancer. He was the only man to defeat Mohammad Ali in 1971 and the three fights the two had, ending with a victory by Ali in 1975, remain among the greatest matches in the sport’s history.
Frazier was the 1964 Olympic boxing heavyweight gold-medallist, former heavyweight boxing champion and an International Boxing Hall of Fame member.
Link to other sites: The Globe and Mail, Daily Mail
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – One man died and another is in serious condition after they had heart attacks, just minutes apart, during an endurance bicycle race in Christchurch, New Zeland. Both suffered cardiac arrest not long after the grueling race got underway. Bob Hopkins, a longtime outdoorsman and fitness buff, age 61, died during the Giant 12 Hour Day/Nighter and 6 Hour Blast Mountain Bike Race at the mountain bike track at McLeans Forest Park.
Competitors could opt to ride solo or as part of a small team, and they could choose between the 10:00-22:00 race or the shorter 10:00-16:00 ride.
Nicholas Carter, 52, who remains in hospital, had his attack while medics were trying to revive Hopkins, according to the NZ Herald.
In Geneva for one night only.
Location: Geneva
Link out: http://www.ticketcorner.ch/harlem-globetrotters…
Date: 11 Dec 2011
Raspille-Tieche river near Crans-Montana
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – Blick magazine has shed some some light on the largest-ever chunk of gold found in Switzerland, reportedly found in the Tieche river near Crans-Montana by a 34-year-old German hiker in September. But the Valais cantonal geologist says maybe it’s a nugget someone lost: there’s no gold in that river.
The gold nugget is 7cm long, 3.5cm wide and weights 128.5 grams.
The rivers in this area have not until now been known for carrying gold. And it’s possible they never will be. Geologist Jean-Daniel Rouiller told Le Nouvelliste, the Valais news service, that it’s quite simply impossible because the right bank of the Rhone is limestone and gold isn’t part of the rock there.
AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND – Canada produced the first shock of the Rugby World Cup as they ousted Tonga from the Cup, 25-20 during a game on 14 September.
Few had given the Canucks much of a chance against the Pacific islanders.
Tonga and Canada, ranked at 12 and 14 respectively, have a long World Cup rivalry dating back to their first match at the tournament in 1987, which the Maple Leafs won 37-4.
Links to: Australia’s Courier Mail and CBC.
Police check Servette supporters' buses en route to Sion for football match
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – Football (soccer) fans in Switzerland have had a lively weekend, starting with a peaceful protest by Turkish fans Friday in Nyon and ending with Geneva Servette fans setting fire to a field, among other hooliganisms, in Sion.
Turkey lays a club to rest in Nyon
Canton Vaud police say a protest Saturday 27 August by about 100 supporters of Turkey’s Fenerbahce football club gathered at Uefa, the European football offices in Nyon, to protest the club’s exclusion from the Uefa Champions League by the Turkish Football Federation. The group, which hadn’t received permission to gather, came from several areas in Europe and starting at 15:00 put on a fake funeral, laying wreaths at Uefa’s door. Police learned about the planned meeting in advance, via the Internet, and had patrols posted in the area as a precaution, but there were no incidents, they say.
Blatter gives date for promised cleanup plan
Associated Press reported Sunday 28 August that Fifa’s president, Sepp Blatter, will provide details of his promised plan to clean up football in October, following a 20-21 October executive committee meetings in Zurich. Blatter promised to rid the sport of corruption when he was re-elected in June on the heels of a scandal that saw several officials, including his opponent for president, Mohamed bin Hammam, banned from football on various charges of corruption.
Basel improves feeble Super League season start, Servette moves up
Basel, Super League current national champions, improved their feeble start to the season by defeating Thun 2-1, after only six points during their first six matches of the season, on home ground.
Servette moves up “after inflicting a 4-0 away defeat on Uefa Europa League participants FC Sion,” reports Fifa, the International Football Federation. “Servette had the points all but wrapped up after netting three times in the opening 24 minutes through Christopher Routis, Mathias Vitkieviez and Ishamel Yartey, and Vitkieviez completed the triumph with his second in the 65th minute.
“The victory sees Servette move up to third, level on 11 points with fourth-placed Sion, who this week progressed through to the group stages of the Europa League after knocking out Celtic in the play-offs.”
Rubber bullets used after hooligans set fire to field, bash toilets
Police put out fire set in field near Sion by football fans
Servette’s victory was marred, however, by hooligans, who were kept in check, but with difficulty, by 180 police officers monitoring the Sion event, including 30 from Geneva.
Police initially intercepted buses with supporters from Geneva heading for Sion and checked them before escorting them directly to the Tourbillon stadium in Sion, to avoid confrontations between groups of supporters.
Servette supporters then broke through the security system to avoid checks at the entrance and once inside caused considerable damage, breaking doors and WCs. A young woman was hospitalized after being seriously cut in the hand.
Police remained on alert during the match, given that 20 or so supporters who have been banned from Swiss stadiums were spotted in the area. Once the match was over “clans” from the two groups of supporters, which had “copiously insulted each other” during the match, say police, tried to clash, with Sion fans rushing the other groups, but police kept them apart, using rubber bullets and pepper sprays.
Two police officers were checked at the hospital after being hit by rocks. Four FC Sion supporters were arrested, ages 33, 30, 28 and 19.
The grueling high-mountain race is a semi-formal, competitive event - Photo OC Third Pole
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND – The first Haute Route road bicycle race connecting Geneva to Nice through the Alps is ready to kick off at 07:00, 21 August in Geneva.
Over 300 participants from 27 countries will embark on a 730-kilometer journey over the Alps in what organizers hope will be a fun seven-stage race.
Those wanting to reach Nice will have first to cross 15 mountain passes during what can only be called a grueling seven-day race.
What sets this ride apart, according to Jean-François Alcan, director of the Haute Route, is that “there is no star of the peloton and no prize-money,” although this doesn’t mean there are no stars riding. French motor-racing F-1 legend Alain Prost announced he will be taking part in some of the stages of the competition.
The Haute Route competition features 15 grueling mountain passes before reaching Nice - Click to enlarge
According to race officials, a total of 58 competitors from the UK, 92 from France, 19 from the US/Canada and 7 Australians will be at the starting line.
The youngest competitor is 20 years old while the oldest is 70-year-old Philippe Vidal from France.
Competitors participate in women’s and men’s solo, duo and team categories.
Follow the race live on
- YouTube
- Or directly on the Haute Route website.
Football and skiing cause greatest number of sports injuries, Swiss safety statistics show
Source: BPU 2011 (click on image to view larger)
ZURICH, SWITZERLAND – The greatest number of injuries to children around the home in Switzerland are due to falling from heights, while by age 26 falling on stairs becomes more of a problem.
By age 45 we become wiser about avoiding falls in general, until age 65 when we suddenly fall more often at level ground and once again from heights. But we remain far more careful about stairs in our old age.
The details of how and when we are likely to injure ourselves in accidents are part of the lastest Swiss safety statistics, published Wednesday 3 August by BPU, the Swiss Safety Council.
Accidents cost the country CHF55 million in 2008
The new figures, culled from 2008 statistics, underscore the often-ignored fact that accidents are a major and costly public health problem. Accidents caused more than 61,000 deaths in 2008, the most recent year for statistics and the one covered by the report.
Disease, by comparison, caused some 57,000 deaths.
The figures hold true for every age group: accidents at all ages take more lives than disease.
The total economic burden of all accidents in 2008 was CHF54.8 million, with home and leisure accidents accounting for more than half, CHF30 million. Road accidents cost more than the sports or home/leisure accidents when tangible costs alone are considered, but the longer-term cost of home and leisure accidents is more than double the figure for either road or sports accidents.
The statistics also show that for the three categories of road, sports and home/leisure accidents, the greatest number of people who are disabled or severely injured have had accidents at home, some 29,000. The figures for people disabled or severely injured by road accidents and sports are about the same: some 12,000 people in 2008 for each group.
The highest number of deaths, 1,538, was due to home accidents, followed by road accidents, 329, and sports accidents, 129.
Road accidents, however, carry the greatest risk of disability, severe injury or death, based on the rates in 2008. BPU registered 91,000 road accidents, 310,000 sports accidents and 600,000 home and leisure accidents.
Soccer has the highest per-hour-of-sport incidence of injuries
The biggest and oldest, 1915, Tennis tournament in Switzerland.
Location: Gstaad, Switzerland
Link out: http://www.creditagricolesuisseopengstaad.ch/en/
Start date: 23 Jul 2011
End date: 31 Jul 2011
From 10 to 16 July, Lausanne will be hosting the world’s biggest gymnastics event. About 20,000 participants, of all ages, from all over the world and members of 55 national federations will meet to share their passion.
After Basel in 1969 and Zürich in 1982, this will be the third time that Switzerland will be hosting this world-scale sporting event, for everybody.
Read our previous story about the Gymnaestrada.
Location: Lausanne, Switzerland
Link out: http://www.wg-2011.com/en/home.html
Start date: 10 Jul 2011
End date: 16 Jul 2011
The bfu's campaign helped to increase the number of helmet-wearers on Swiss slopes (photo ©2011 Tara S. Kerpelman)
The Swiss snow sports safety campaign, “1,000 accidents a day – protect yourself with a helmet,” has received good marks: an evaluation by the Swiss Council for Accident Prevention (bfu) says the 2007-2010 marketing campaign was an overall success.
The percentage of people wearing helmets while skiing or snowboarding went up from 52 to 76 percent between 2007 and 2010, over the course of the campaign.
The bfu partnered with the Swiss Insurance Association (SVV) and Rega (Swiss air rescue) for the campaign. It argued that the main reasons skiers and snowboarders did not wear helmets were they were not conscious of the dangers involved, they thought they were not vulnerable to the dangers, or they found that helmets were too uncomfortable to wear.
The report says the campaign reduced the number of people who fit into these categories.
The increase was smaller in French-speaking Switzerland, where it went up more than 16 percentage points, than in German-speaking areas, where the increase was greater than 26 percent, the report says.
Change in the percentage of people wearing helmets (source: bfu.ch)
There was more familiarity with the bfu’s campaign over time: only 47 percent of those surveyed in 2008 had heard of the campaign but this rose to 69 percent by 2010, with a slightly more significant increase in the 18 to 25 age group, 69 percent in 2010, up from 46 percent in 2008.
The campaign was probably not the only or even main reason for the increase in helmet-wearers, the report says, but it notes that the bfu’s efforts supported and reinforced the other reasons.
These probably include more celebrities and sports stars seen with helmets and, over time a generation, following the example of those who are older who have begun to wear helmets.
Woman in critical condition after 200 metre fall
Update 11:20 Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - Erhard Loretan, one of Switzerland’s most famous climbers who achieved world fame as one of the few people to climb 14 of the world’s peaks over 8,000 metres, died Thursday 28 April in a fall in canton Valais. He captured the world’s imagination in 1986 when he made a 40-hour ascent of Mount Everest at night, using no oxygen. He took 13 years, from 1982-95, to climb the 14 tallest peaks.
The mountain guide, whose 52nd birthday was Thursday, was leading a 38-year-old Bern woman on a climb in upper Valais, near the cantonal border with Bern, when the roped pair fell as they were climbing a ridge at 3,800 metres, about noon Thursday. Another climbing party spotted the traces of the fall and called 144 soon after, at 12:14, say Valais police.
The two were climbing in the Fieschertal area and had reached Gruuenegghorn, where they left their skis. They then climbed the summit ridge in the direction of Gruenhorn when, for reasons that are not yet clear, the roped pair fell 200 metres on the northwest face.
A helicopter rescue was not possible due to fog in the area, and two rescue teams climbed to the spot only to discover the man’s body and the woman in a critical state. Loretan’s body was identified only late Thursday. The woman was carried out and then taken by helicopter to a hospital.
TSR in March 2011 filmed an interview (French) with Loretan and fellow climber Andre Georges, about the work, challenge and joy of being climbing pioneers.
Bern, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - Barely a whiff of the scandal has reached Switzerland, but it’s top of the news in India this week, and UK media have been following it with interest: the former head of the Commonwealth Games in Delhi (CWG) in October 2010, Suresh Kalmadi, was arrested Monday 25 April and appeared in court Tuesday, charged, according to India’s Central Bureau of Investigation with “conspiracy to cause favour to a private firm based in Switzerland in awarding the contract for Timing, Scoring & Result system at an inflated cost of Rs. 141 crore [ed. note: CHF27.7 million].
Kalmadi is the third top official to be arrested since March in connection with the investigation.
A lawyer was arrested for throwing a slipper at Kalmadi as he arrived at court Tuesday.
Wednesday, Indian media report that the Indian Olympic Association have replaced him as president (the IOC in Lausanne has not yet confirmed the information).
The company in question, while not named by the court, is clearly Swiss Timing, based in Corgémont, canton Bern, which is owned by the Swatch Group. The scandal has been whipped up by the Indian press for months, but reached a new peak this week, implying in passing that Swiss Timing might be accused of wrongdoing, and even the Associated Press expressed confusion, saying in reports published Tuesday that “it was not immediately clear if Swiss Timing was also accused of alleged wrongdoing.” The sentence was later dropped from updates, but the older version is still available from several of AP’s client news outlets.
Swatch Group, in a press release issued 26 April, vehemently denies the Indian media reports and clarifies the financial situation, which has been the source of much confusion in the Indian press.
The CWG were pursued by charges of corruption months before the Games took place:
Swatch Group vehemently denies Indian media rumours
Beatrice Howald, press spokesperson for Swatch, told GenevaLunch Wednesday that the company has not been contacted or accused by Indian authorities of any illegal activities, nor has it been able to obtain any information in response to its efforts to determine if there were problems with the contract bid process.
“Swiss Timing would have had nothing to gain by this,” she points out, qualifying the company’s reputation in the field of sports events timing as “excellent”.
Swiss Timing was responsible for timing and scoring at the Games. A second company, India-based Gem International, may have been involved in obtaining the contract, but the process now under investigation by a court in Delhi, appears murky.
Swiss Timing has long history of timing top world sports events
Swiss Timing is one of the world’s top sports events timekeepers:
Basel’s stinky flower, Geneva’s sexiest fingers study, Cern’s rumoured Higgs particles, US women skate to gold in Zurich
Cern's Alice experiment, particle collisions
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - A giant stinky flower in Basel, ring fingers that mean true love, thrilling women’s ice hockey world finals – the international population in the Lake Geneva region disappears during the spring holidays, heading off on travels near and far, but the news doesn’t stop.
Here’s a brief roundup of what you might have missed:
Phew! but beautiful to behold, Basel’s corpse flower
Switzerland was on the world news map, with hundreds of articles about the amophophallus titanium, aka the “corpse flower” that pulled in an estimated 25,000 visitors to Basel. Key facts: it is one of the world’s largest flowers (technically: “largest unbranched inflorescence in the world” according to wikipedia), it smells of rotting flesh, and it grows in the wild only in Sumatra, Indonesia. The first cultivated flowering was at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, London in 1889 and since then there have been few sightings of the rarely-blooming flower. Basel’s Botanical Gardens‘ two-metre high plant bloomed this weekend, for the first time in its 17 years, and the first such plant to flower in Switzerland in 75 years.
Check out his length, dear
A man’s ring finger length gives clues to his masculinity, researcher Camille Ferdenzi at the University of Geneva in Switzerland shows in her research on 2D:4D, the name for the ratio comparing second and fourth digits. Her work was published 19 April in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biology Letters. For an easier explanation, LiveScience unravels the mysteries of sex and the ring finger.
God or no god particles, Cern is intense
Bikes will be out in force in western Vaud Saturday
Lausanne, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - Watch out for bicycles Saturday 9 April if you’re driving a car, with races being run on open roads for western Vaud’s cycling day. Police are warning drivers that the two-wheelers will be out in force between 13:00 and 16:30.
The racers will do at least four loops on the following circuit: Reverolle, Apples, Clarmont, Cottens, Grancy, St-Denis, La Chaux, Cossonay, Senarclens, Vullierens, Colombier, St-Saphorin-sur-Morges, Echichens, Monnaz and Vaux-sur-Morges.
The last bit of snow marks the beginning of Spring.
Location: Crans-Montana
Link out: http://www.capricesfestival.ch
Start date: 6 Apr 2011
End date: 9 Apr 2011
This is the second in the Swiss dream ski week, where Nick and Liam Bates, regular contributors to GenevaLunch, see how much great skiing at top Swiss resorts they can pack into one week. Be sure to check their tips at the end.
Liam and Nick Bates in St Moritz, canton Graubuenden
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - Nick and Liam left the car at home near Lake Geneva, with some reluctance since they are used to driving to the slopes. They caught a fast CFF InterCity train for Zurich, then headed for St Moritz.
Both had passes for first class travel; Liam, who lives in Beijing, had a Swiss Pass for foreigners, which meant one 8-day ticket that covered all trains as well as city transport, the mountain trains they used and cablecars in the resorts they visited.
Initial calculations were that a car would be cheaper and handier, but by the end of the week the two had changed their minds. Two Swiss Pass tickets for eight days would cost just under CHF1,000 but a rental car plus CHF300 petrol to cover the same distance, plus parking fees at some hotels and lift areas would quickly have cost the same.
“We never missed having a car, at all,” says Nick, who would have done all the driving since Liam does not have a Swiss license. “In many ways the train was much more pleasant. You don’t have to worry about maps or where you’re going. And when you’re feeling tired, it’s nice. You can have a glass of wine, read a book or watch a movie on your laptop.”
You can go out to dinner at the end of the day, relax and drink without considering if you’re staying under the legal driving limit, he notes.
First class is busy for a reason: it has advantages
Liam, who normal travels as cheaply as possible, and who expects other people to, was surprised to see how busy first class trains are.
First class cars have bigger seats and more luggage space, and you tend to see more foreigners on them, Liam noticed, probably because so many foreigners buy special offer packages before they come to Switzerland.
These often include first class travel because these cars are usually more conveniently located for making connections and for getting in and out of stations more easily or quickly.
Commuters who work on the train regularly often have general subscription passes for first class. The Swiss have the world’s highest rate of use of trains in the world, and rush hour on commuter trains can get very busy.
Zurich’s yes makes it an urban vs rural vote
Geneva says no to tax amnesty and single state housing body
Swiss army soldiers: the guns will stay at home
Update 3, 18:00 Bern, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – Swiss citizens Sunday 13 February at 16:30 were close to resoundingly rejecting (TSR map) a popular initiative that would end the long-standing practice of keeping military arms at home.
Final official results are in from 25 of 26 cantons: 20 have rejected the initiative and 6 have approved it. Zurich is the latest one in, voting “yes” but in a close vote, approved by 50.4 percent with 49.6 percent saying “no”.
Zurich, Geneva, Basel and canton Vaud with Lausanne have all approved it, turning the vote into an urban versus rural Switzerland divide, as well as a language regions divide.
Bern, however, with its urban and rural mix, rejected the proposed change to gun laws, voting 59.4 percent against it.
The “no” vote in several German-speaking cantons was more than 60 percent and in some cases 70 percent.
Overall, close to the final count coming in, the “no” vote was 57 percent.
Geneva, Vaud, Jura, Neuchatel and Basel City voted in favour of it, with 61 percent in favour in Geneva and 58.9 percent in Basel City while the others were 52-53 percent.
The arguments during the run-up to the vote were often emotional, with the rationale behind the initiative being to reduce the number of deaths and in particular suicides by firearms. But other issues underlay the votes, including state versus federal balance of power, since an approval would have created a national gun registry to replace cantonal ones and it would have made it more difficult to keep arms at home for sports purposes.
Fewer than one-quarter of registered guns in Switzerland are military issue firearms, the government has estimated.
Socialists and Greens as well as a number of church groups supported the initiative but the Federal Council opposed it, saying current legislation is adequate and the problems need to be addressed elsewhere.
Those in favour have argued that the easy accessibility of guns makes suicide too easy: if a gun is not handy many suicides could be avoided.
Some groups against the initiative have argued that tightening the rules would create a black market in guns, which could prove equally dangerous.
Switzerland has the highest rate of suicides by handguns in Europe, 24-28 percent from 1996 to 2005, according to a pre-vote report by Swissinfo. It trails well behind the United States, where the figure is 57 percent, says Swissinfo.
It is not the leading country overall, however: Switzerland, with 3-4 deaths by suicide a day, ranks 20th in the world for suicide according to World Health Organization figures, with 19.1 per 100,000 (USA: 11.1 per 100,000, ranks 40th).
Canton issues: Geneva says no to two initiatives, Bern votes for a nuclear power station
Geneva voters firmly rejected two initiatives, one that would have given a tax amnesty to those who have defrauded the government and another that would have brought under one roof four separate state bodies that are involved in construction for low-income and needy groups.
Bern agreed to a new nuclear power station in Muehleberg while canton Nidwald has said no to storing nuclear waste on its territory, at Wellenberg.
A Portuguese fan worried about his team - Photo Euro208 by Amir Rijaveck
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – The Portuguese Seleçao has confirmed that Ronaldo Cristiano will lead the squad in Geneva 9 February in the friendly match against Argentina, and football fans everywhere are preparing for the Swiss showdown between Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.
Portugal and the South Americans have played only six times previously, with Argentina beating the Portuguese four times and tying once. Portugal has only been able to beat the Celeste once and that was back in 1972.
The game was moved to Geneva from London where it was originally scheduled to take place.
The last time Argentina played in Geneva was in 2005 when it was defeated by England 3-2 during a friendly.
International sports, football
In 2008 Portuguese fans in Geneva saw their team kicked out of the Euro Cup, the 2010 friendly could be their chance to make it up to their fans - Photo Euro208 by Amir Rijaveck
Update 20:00 / Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – February 9 is the date for a battle of the famous when footballer Cristiano Ronaldo of Portugal and his national team face the world’s most valuable player in football, Lionel Messi from Argentina, and his squad.
Ronaldo, the highest paid soccer player in the world, and the Portuguese squad facing off with Messi, widely considered the best player of his generation, are expected to draw thousands of fans to the Stade de Genève.
The Portuguese living in Geneva made up an estimated seven percent of the city’s population in 2008.
The friendly will kick off at 20:00 on 9 February.
The game was moved to Geneva from London where it was originally scheduled to take place, a change confirmed by the official site of the Argentina football team.
The last time Argentina played in Geneva was in 2005 when it was defeated by England 3-2 during a friendly.
Lara Gut will rejoin the Swiss ski team later this year
Muri, Bern, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – Swiss athlete Laura Gut, recently suspended from international competition, will return to the women’s Swiss ski team later this season.
Gut, the darling of the Swiss ski scene two years ago, was suspended mid-December 2010 by the Swiss Ski Federation for her repeated public criticism of the women’s team coach and for refusing to follow rules regarding uniforms.
“The meeting [secretly held on 30 December] was very positive for both parties,” says a Swiss-ski statement. “The federation was informed that Lara Gut will follow rules regarding uniforms, therefore there is no need for her to appear before the Court of Arbitration for Sports.”
According to the Federation, Gut will continue to train with her own team led by her father Pauli Gut and by Mauro Pini who also heads the Swiss men’s ski team; the skier will rejoin the women’s team later this winter.
Gut who raced into the top three at Val d’Isère, France, in 2008 at age 17, suffered a hip injury which bumped her from the 2008 Olympics. The athlete is coached by a private group, Team Gut, rather than by the Swiss team trainers.
Sunrise 31 December 2010, fog-enshrouded Rhone Valley
Cross-country skiing, Goms Valley, Valais 27 December
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – The sun is out on the mountains, but fog hovers in most lower areas in French-speaking Switzerland Friday afternoon. If it’s sunshine you want as the new year of 2011 comes in Saturday morning, head for the heights!
Weather forecast
Pea soup on the plains, clear skies in the mountains: Rhone Valley, Valais
Expect stable temperatures with highs of 2C in the Lake Geneva area and 0C in Valais, then highs hovering around 0C throughout western Switzerland until at least Tuesday 4 January.
Fog will continue to hug the plain Saturday, but will lift in Valais, where you can expect mostly sunny skies until Wednesday, when the forecast is for partly cloudy skies. Sunday will bring changeable weather to Geneva and Lausanne, with partly cloudy skies until Tuesday, when heavy fog is expected to return.
Reminder: check holiday traffic forecasts, published earlier by GenevaLunch, to avoid the worst of the holiday traffic jams.
Resorts and winter sports update
Goms Valley, the tiny hamlet where Cesar Ritz grew up before making his fortune in the hotel business
With the slightly milder weather and the sunny days this week, our Jura resorts have been able to offer great conditions for skiing. We have had a little new snow and a number of our lifts are now operating. Take care, as the snow cover is still fairly thin, but we are expecting more snow in the New Year. Enjoy the skiing.
Swiss Alps
Snow fell early in the week, but slightly warmer weather 29-30 December has reduced the snow cover slightly in most areas. Snow is hard, with a 70cm base in Crans-Montana at 2,400m. Verbier reports
Prepared cross-country ski trails are virtually all open, and all but the lower ends of most luge (sled) runs. Snow-shoe trails are in decent shapes, most resorts are reporting.
The Goms Valley above Brig, en route to the Nufenen and Furka passes, both suffers and benefits from heavier snowfalls than the rest of the country in winter, but it also has some of the most piercingly blue sunny skies. Its famously long kilometres of flat cross-country ski runs are in excellent shape right now and good for beginners and families, with many options for more experienced skiers. The trains are often packed with skiers, so travel light if you’re taking the train (a great way to get there).
Events, speedy skiers’ tool and avalanche bulletins
The sun never managed to burn off the Rhone Valley sun during the day 31 December
Good crowds are expected at upcoming World Cup Alpine ski events, including:
Adelboden, canton Bern – 8 January
Wengen, Bern – 11 January (European Cup, 7 January)
Kitzbuehel, Austria – 19 January
Chamonix – 27 January
How fast do you really ski?
And for those who prefer to speed down the slopes themselves, the Swiss Safety Council has a new tool for skiers, an iPhone app to measure your speed. The idea is to better assess the risks you’re taking, not just try to beat your best time, of course.
Avalanche bulletins are currently at level 2 out of 5, “moderate” with the risk subsiding over the next few days, thanks to cold and sunny weather. Check the daily national avalanche service bulletins for details if you’re going off-trail.
Happy New Year 2011!
Goms Valley, Valais, farms in sunshine, side valley storm brewing, 27 December 2010
Some participants race downhill in costumes, all great fun at Villars.
Location: Villars
Link out: http://www.villars.ch/en/page.cfm/Manifestation…
Date: 31 Dec 2010
Christmas holiday traffic is upon us! Weather forecast, resort updates, traffic planning alerts
Skier Lara Gut signs with new sports agency
Photos by Keepps on flickr, Nyon 17 December 2010 set
Nyon, early Friday morning 17 December (photo, Keepps on flickr)
Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – School ends for the Christmas break in neighbouring France Friday 17 December and in some German states, while Vaud and Geneva finish at the end of the school day Thursday 23 December (complete list of Swiss school vacation dates) – note corrected dates. The mountains have snow; the snow cover is not deep, but more is promised. Expect traffic on the roads! The women’s World Cup ski season will see some chilly racing this weekend in neighbouring France’s Val d’Isère resort, with temperatures at -10C Friday morning and -14 at nearby Tignes. The snow is in good condition, with 103cm at the top and 40 at 1,850 metres.
Swiss skier Lara Gut announced Friday noon that she has signed a contract with a new Swiss agency, Pool Position, to help develop her reputation nationally and internationally. “This close collaboration, coordinated by my private team, will ensure how my reputation is built, both as an athlete and a private individual.”
Pool Position is a recently developped partnership, based in Zurich, between Ringier, Switzerland’s largest media company, and the German firm Kick-Media AG. The company advises clients in several fields: film, TV, theatre, fashion, music, sports and show business.
Gut was suspended for two races at the end of December for repeatedly ignoring warnings about wearing team clothing and for publicly criticizing the Swiss women’s team coach. She performed well during pre-race runs Thursday, coming in 8th overall and first for the Swiss. She is making her comeback this season after a hip injury followed by surgery last season. Val d’Isère is where Gut charmed the sports world in February, winning two World Cup silver medals at only age 17.
Weather forecast
Snow that began falling 16 December is expected to end by noon Friday in most areas, continuing a bit longer in the Jura and Swiss Alps. Saturday: changeable weather, but cold, ranging from -8C to a high of -1C on the plain and -16C to -7C in mountain resorts. Sunday: warmer, highs around 0C, with snow starting again, but the snowline gradually rising to 500-800 metres. GenevaLunch weather page
Winter resort news
Swiss snow forecast, road alerts, Anzere traffic change, kids’ competitions this winter
La Loge at Crozet, Jura, 24 November 2010 (photo, Jean Charles and Pauline Cusin)
Update 13:20 Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - It’s official: time to pull out those skis and head for the Jura slopes, or tuck up inside and light a fire, because this weekend will be cold and wintry. MeteoSwiss (see GenevaLunch weather pages) is predicting highs of 1 to 2C throughout central and western Switzerland, with sun alternating with snow.
New booklet helps winter sports fans shift to public transport
Leisure time activities account for a hefty part of road use in Switzerland. ATE, Association Transport & Environnement, has just published an excellent guide to using public transport for winter sports, with details for the time it takes, how to best get there, equipment rental and more for each Swiss resort. The guide is an excellent resource and good addition to the information available about winter sports (Fre, Ger, Ita).
Winter roads: reminder from Vaud that conditions can dictate legal speed
If you don’t yet have your winter tires on the car, don’t delay, as snow as low as the plains makes for slippery driving, Canton Vaud’s highway department reminds drivers they are legally obliged to drive at lower speeds when road conditions, such as ice and snow, call for it.
Cantonal road authorities say they replenished their stock of salt this summer, but if the winter is a tough one, supplies in Europe are likely to run short.
Road clearing times, list of Vaud closed roads
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La Faucille, Jura (photo, ©2010: Shirley Curran)
Geneva / Lausanne, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - Snow began to make a serious appearance in the Swiss Alps and the Jura mountains over the weekend, leaving the first layers that are needed for a good skiing base. Jura skiers were already out Saturday and Sunday 20-21 November, at La Faucille. Cross-country skiers from the Lausanne area began training, while in Saas-Fee early season skiers have been having fun for a couple weeks.
GenevaLunch Friday 3 December begins its popular Friday winter weather and snow sports reports. Here’s a warm-up:
Geneva has a skiing first!
The Monts Jura will be hosting a women’s event, the FIS Coupe d’Europe de Ski Alpin Dames. This major event in the skiing calendar is coming to Geneva for the first time. The success of the Monts Jura resort in hosting the French championship competitions in 2009 and 2010 encouraged the European cup organizers to plan one stage of their competition there. The Swiss Ski Federation will be organizing Friday’s Super-Géant race and the French Ski Federation the Super-Combiné on Saturday in Crozet-Lélex, less than half an hour from the centre of Geneva.
Exceptionally, on Friday 11 February, skiers will be able to buy their day pass for 1€ at the Crozet lift. Pedestrians will be able to watch 140 world class skiers, travelling via Lélex on the Friday and the Saturday, also for 1€. Details on the Monts Jura web site.
Winter tires and chains reminder
Vercorin, canton Valais, Switzerland 21 November 2010, snowy peaks above village
Winter tires are not obligatory in Switzerland, but if you are in an accident and your summer tires or winter tires with worn treads are considered a factor, your insurance company and the judge might see fit to give you the bill.
France does not require them either, although some mountain districts do. Austria and Italy are the same. Winter tires are obligatory in Germany.
Make an appointment now, if you don’t yet have winter tires or want someone to change them for you, as garages get very busy with this work by the end of November.
Bangladesh will face Pakistan on the 16th Asian Games women’s final 19 November.
China, the host country, was defeated by Bangladesh 17 November on a nine-wicket, while Pakistan defeated Japan, also on nine wickets, 16 November.
Links to other sites: Malaysia Star, official website of the 16th Asian Games
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Lausanne, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – The lake road between Lausanne and La Tour-de-Peilz will be closed to traffic (residents excepted) Sunday from 07:30 to approximately 17:00. More than 10,000 runners are registered for the Lausanne Marathon and the road will re-open depending on when the runners finish.
The marathon itself is just one of several events that include a half-marathon and walking races.
Lausanne is the departure point but the lakefront down to La Tour-de-Peilz will be given over to the runners and police warn anyone driving in the area to use caution.
Lucerne’s marathon and half-marathon.
Location: Lucerne, Switzerland
Link out: http://www.lucernemarathon.ch
Date: 31 Oct 2010
