Paul - Coach's perspective

COACH'S PERSPECTIVE

Interski Experience & Updates

By Paul Lorenz

The 2023 Levi Interski in Finland far exceeded the experiences had at previous Interski’s that I have attended. The world class facilities and Levi’s excellent organisation really contributed to an outstanding event and one that has raised the bar for future events.

Attending Interski as Head Coach was a new, and very different experience. The pressures of presenting and performing were replaced with the pressures of organisation and support. The organisation also extended beyond the Team itself to our 26 supporters. As head coach, I also had to attend the General Assembly’s of all associations that the APSI is a member of including the International Ski Instructors Association (ISIA), International Association of Education in Science and Snowsports (IAESS) and of course Interski itself. This meant that my schedule was jam packed all day, every day!

Despite many of our team attending Interski for the first time, all Australian team members carried themselves with confidence and absolute professionalism. As coach, I was privy to comments and feedback from coaches of other Nations. I found it very moving to hear the level of respect for the Australian Team across all disciplines. Our team worked very hard in the lead up to the event and I am incredibly proud of this group and their representation of the APSI and Australia.

Prior to Interski, interested member nations submit a bid to host the following congress. Ordinarily, two or three nations put forward a bid to be voted on at the event. Interski did not receive an official bid for the next Congress. Interski has extended the submission deadline to October 2023, at which time a vote will take place to determine the location of Interski 2027. While there is no concrete information as yet, there were murmurs of a North American Nation submitting a bid.

During the ISIA General Assembly, member nations voted on an important motion regarding the Italian Organisation. In the lead up to Interski, Associazione Maestri di Sci Italiani’s (AMSI) requested to rejoin the ISIA. After listening to a short address from the AMSI representative, ISIA member nations discussed this request at length before voting. Fortunately, the majority of nations were in support and Italy has been allowed to rejoin the ISIA. Unfortunately, there was no discussion regarding Austria and France and whether they will rejoin the association.

All in all, Interski is an incredibly inspiring event that drives our industry. Unfortunately, inspiration is not easily measured and can be deprioritised when considering return on investments. However, watching a new team rise to the occasion was proof to me how powerful an inspiring situation can be. At a time when the APSI (and our industry) has so few Trainers, the inspiration sparked by Interski will be instrumental in developing our organisation for years to come.