IOC Reaffirms Ban on Russian Teams for 2026 Winter Olympics The International Olympic Committee (IOC) reaffirmed this week that Russian national teams will remain barred from participating at the next Winter Games, continuing sanctions imposed in response to Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. That means teams in iconic winter sports—including Russia’s powerhouse men’s ice hockey program—are excluded from Olympic contention. However, Russian athletes may technically be eligible to […] Julia Schneemann | May 29, 2025 0 Comments
Croatia’s Zrinka Ljutic Wins Prestigious Matteo Baumgarten Award for Excellence in Sport and Scholarship Zrinka Ljutic, Croatia’s rising Alpine ski star and a dedicated kinesiology student, has been named the 28th recipient of the International Matteo Baumgarten Award, an honor recognizing young athletes who balance academic excellence with elite athletic performance. The award, created in memory of Italian skier Matteo Baumgarten—a promising student-athlete who tragically died in a car crash in October 1995 while […] Julia Schneemann | May 29, 2025 0 Comments
Epic Expansion: Exploring the 6 New Austrian Ski Destinations Added to the 2025-26 Epic Pass Vail Resorts has significantly broadened its European footprint by incorporating six renowned Austrian ski resorts into the 2025-26 Epic Pass. This strategic move enhances the pass’s appeal to international skiers and snowboarders seeking diverse alpine experiences. Related: Vail Resorts Adds a Total of 6 New Austrian Ski Resorts to Epic Pass Offering—1Day Ahead of Price Hike While the expansion of […] Julia Schneemann | May 29, 2025 0 Comments
History with SnowBrains: How a Legendary Rescue Inspired the Birkebeiner Cross-Country Race In the depths of a Norwegian winter in the year 1206, two warriors strapped wooden skis to their feet and raced across snow-covered mountains for miles, a precious cargo in their arms: the infant crown prince. Their heroic journey from safely from Lillehammer to Østerdalen and from there to Trondheim, is commemorated to this day eight centuries later for the […] Julia Schneemann | May 28, 2025 0 Comments
Rob Katz Returns as Vail Resorts CEO in Surprise Leadership Shake-Up In a surprise move that has caught much of the ski industry and Wall Street off guard, Vail Resorts announced on Tuesday, May 27, that longtime chief executive Rob Katz will return as CEO, replacing Kirsten Lynch effective immediately. Lynch, who had served as CEO since November 2021 and spent 14 years with the company, is stepping down but will […] Julia Schneemann | May 27, 2025 0 Comments
Top 13 Ski Areas With the Highest Lift Capacity in the World No one likes lines, so we all appreciate efficient infrastructure that gets you on the mountain and ready for some fun fast. Naturally, people will be drawn to resorts with the highest lift capacity to maximize the time on snow. The most common way to measure a ski area’s lifting capability is the hourly capacity of all its lifts. It […] Brains Julia Schneemann | May 27, 2025 1 Comment
History With SnowBrains: How Whistler, BC, Got Its Name Whistler Mountain was known by the Lil’wat Nation as CwÃtima or KacwÃtima and Sk̲wik̲w by the Squamish Nation. In 1932, the mountain was named London Mountain because the thick fog surrounding the area reminded the first British settlers of London’s infamous pea soup fog. However, as more and more European settlers flocked to Canada, the name Whistler started to take […] Brains Julia Schneemann | May 26, 2025 0 Comments
History With SnowBrains: The First Ski Lift in the World The first ski lift in the world was created over 100 years ago by a German hotel owner in the village of Schollach in the Black Forest region of Germany. Robert Winterhalde, manager of the “Schneckenhof”, wanted to make it easier for hotel guests to access the local hill and created the world’s first ski lift, which started operation on February 14, […] Brains Julia Schneemann | May 19, 2025 1 Comment
Julia Schneemann
Julia Schneemann
Brains
