Mount Sima will be hosting Fédération Internationale de Ski (FIS) races for the first time in its history Nov. 18-19.

The historic event will include male and female Giant Slalom (GS) races Nov. 18 and slalom races Nov. 19.

The general manager of Mount Sima, Sam Oettli, explains how the races came to be.

"It came about through our pre-season program that we've been running here since 2014 where we have pre-season training for alpine athletes and over the years we've definitely heard requests from the teams and coaches like 'Hey, if you're ever gonna have a race up here, that would be really great' to help them out a lot, especially in the points categories and just being able to get on snow in a race format and before a lot of other places and teams do. So that was kind of the impetus.

"We always talked about it and about a year and a half ago, we started approaching some of the coaches who come here every year and getting their input on what they thought about helping us out because there's requirements for the people that are involved with the race that have to have certain certifications. Not many people here in the Yukon have those and they're difficult to get, but these coaches will have them.

"So we're thinking about a coach's race format, which would see the coaches help out for key positions but we still organize it all for them and that's kind of how we started. We started making sure we had coaches interested and excited about it and the next step was once we had that finalized here over the summer, we approached Alpine Yukon – although they were a part of this conversation prior to that – and then said 'OK, I think we have enough people to make it happen. As the sport governing body for alpine racing in the Yukon, can you approach this with the application for a race?' And they did that and we were awarded it."

Oettli had a mixed reaction to the news.

"I was excited and also panicked all at the same time. 'OK, now it's for real', especially when they put it on their (race) calendar … and the moment that happened, we got so many calls from teams and coaches saying 'Hey, is this for real? I just saw the calendar posted. You guys are like, the first ones on it.' So I'm like, 'Yep!' So there's a lot of buzz about it. People are excited."

Oetlli said race participants are getting close to the World Cup level.

"We're gonna have 16 years and older racers, which means any age (above 16) can be in it .… it has the potential, if there's racers out there on the world stage that are looking for more points or to get back on snow sooner, they could come here and they could race … they'd start building points right away, which is an important factor for them when it comes to positioning on the World Cup towards the end of the year, even.

"At least those who are going to be in the World Cup level here very soon. Some of the athletes that come here for training are in that 16-22 year range, like university teams … and they are definitely at a level where they are getting close. And this is one more thing that will help them get even closer."

As for numbers of racers, "We're expecting around 80 or 90," said Oettli. "We are capped at 120 (each day) for the race … it'll probably be something like half and half men's and women's. Maybe a little less women than men, but it's pretty even at the level that we're hosting."

So far, a limited number of countries will be participating, although that of course could change.

"The last we heard, some of the clubs that are already here for preseason have a few international athletes on their teams, like through the university they're going to and we figure at least four nations at this point." Those nations include Canada, the U.S. and possibly a couple of Eastern European nations.

"At least 80 per cent of the field will be all Canadians and I would estimate another 10 to 15 per cent are going to be from the U.S. and the rest would be … from other countries," said Oettli.

Registration is open up until a couple of days before the races.

"Most athletes are going to register long before that, because there's logistics getting here and that sort of thing," related Oettli.

Oettli was asked the inevitable question about allowing Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete.

"At this point we haven't had any," he replied. "It would definitely be an issue we would have to address. Not to mention that even I have staff members that are from the Ukraine that are displaced here from the war, so I wouldn't be really excited about having any Russians or Belarusians here."

On Oct. 22, according to Reuters, the FIS announced that Russian and Belarusian skiers remain banned from FIS events.

"Just from an operational standpoint and just Mount Sima in general, like, we're not interested, really, in having any Russians or Belarusians here just because well, they need to change their attitude toward other countries," said Oettli.

He described what the race courses will look like.

"The GS is starting from the very top of Dan's Descent. Both races are on Dan's Descent, which is our homologated (approved) race run. GS is starting from the very top to just outside the race hut at the base of Dan's. So that gives it a vertical of about 320 metres, I believe.

"And then the slalom will be starting from what we call the Second Pitch of Dan's and then down to the bottom as well."

Oettli figured the length of the GS and slalom courses would be about 1000 feet and 800 feet, respectively, comparable to other FIS courses.

"It compares pretty well, especially to Eastern Canadian courses that are set up. Obviously, we're not nearly as tall as the mountains in B.C. and western Alta. but what we offer here is some really dynamic terrain.

"We had Alpine Canada's head coach of the men's program here just to take a look at the mountain in the spring and talk about this race … he loved the place. He'd never been on the mountain and he thought it was a total gem and could see how the terrain we have offers a lot of really good training opportunities and race opportunities, just cause of its shape," Oettli recalled.

Oettli added, "We're making snow hard on Dan's (Descent) right now, so we're looking good so far, as long as this weather holds, we're definitely on schedule to open up here for this race. We're excited."

Preseason for Mount Sima starts Nov. 6.

"We have training and racers on this run starting Nov. 6," said Oettli.

The regular season starts Dec. 3.