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2019 World Para Nordic Skiing Championships Coming to P.G.

Nov 2, 2017 | 1:27 PM

The World is coming to Prince George and the Caledonia Nordic Ski Club

After the great success of hosting the 2015 Canada Winter Games, the Caledonia Nordic Ski Club and the City of Prince George are tremendously excited to welcome the world by hosting the 2019 World Para Nordic Skiing Championships.  Prince George has a rich history of hosting national level cross country skiing championships, but this will be the first World Championships that the city has ever hosted.   This event also solidifies the long-term vision of building world-class facilities and world-class volunteers to host world-class events. 

The events that occurred in the lead up and delivery of the Canada Winter Games were instrumental in setting the path toward the 2019 World Para Nordic Skiing Championships. This included facility upgrades as well as building capacity and support among volunteers and within the community.

After submitting an intent to bid proposal last summer, the International Paralympic Committee graciously awarded the Caledonia Nordic Ski Club and the City of Prince George the 2019 World Para Nordic Skiing Championships on December 9, 2016. The announcement also included the naming of the Chair of the Local Organizing Committee (Kevin Pettersen) and Chief of Competitions (Jim Burbee) for the World Championships. 

The World Para Nordic Skiing Championships are held every two years, and after the Paralympic Winter Games, they represent the pinnacle of achievement for Para Nordic athletes.  These athletes, men and women, are grouped into three classes for competition: sitting, standing, and visually impaired.  They will compete in four cross-country skiing and four biathlon medal events over a period of 10 days. The previous World Para Nordic Skiing Championships were hosted in Finsterau, Germany from Feb 10 to 20, 2017 and hosted approximately 135 athletes.

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“After having attended the Championships earlier in Germany, I’m so excited to expose our region to these athletes,” says Kevin Pettersen, Chair of the Local Organizing Committee and previous president of the Caledonia Nordic Ski Club. “They truly embody the best of Paralympic sport and the Paralympic movement and will astonish and excite the community about the possibilities of Paralympic sport.”    

The 2019 Prince George World Para Nordic Skiing Championships will be held from Feb 15-24, 2019 at the Caledonia Nordic Ski Centre, located 15 minutes from the city centre.  Occuring less than 12 months after the 2018 Paralympic Winter Games in PyeongChang Korea, the 2019 World Para Nordic Skiing Championships will serve as a “re-match”  for the 114 contested world championship medals and represents an opportunity to continue growing the sport around the world. 

For the 2019 World Championships, it is estimated 135 to 175 athletes from 20 to 25 different countries will participate.  In addition, more than 200 coaches and officials, and hundreds of visitors are expected to attend.  The event will also be live streamed around the world through social media and traditional broadcasting (reaching in excess of 2 million viewers).  All who participate will experience both the world-class Nordic facilities, and the world-class hospitality in Prince George.