Olympic hopefuls head to New Zealand for the summer

Skiing or boarding in New Zealand this winter and noticing too much racing spandex whizzing by? Well, it’s not exactly in fashion – Winter Olympic hopefuls are using the resorts to train for next year’s games.

According to Coronet Peak, a ski resort on the south island of New Zealand, the ski area is about to become the “hub of international race training in the Southern Hemisphere in the lead up to the 2010 Winter Olympics”.

Teams from the US, Switzerland, Canada, and Sweden are training at the resort this year as well as the Kiwi national team – all of who are eyeing gold in next year’s Winter Olympics in Vancouver, Canada.

Nils Coberger, Coach for the New Zealand national team said this season had been fantastic for training at Coronet Peak.

“The combination of great natural snow this year and superb man-made snow from a new snowmaking system has made world class training conditions at The Peak.”

Normally ski events and teams taking over hills is an annoyance for winter holiday makers but think of it this way – you may just share a lift ride with an Olympian this Southern Hemisphere Winter.

Posted by CherryPow on August 5th, 2009 in Coronet Peak and New Zealand and Winter Olympics