2023/24 ISMF Ski Mountaineering season: Preview, schedule and how to watch SkiMo live
Find out more about SkiMo, a fascinating winter discipline making its Olympic debut at Milano Cortina 2026. From November to April, stay tuned for live coverage of World Cup, Youth World Cup, and European Championship events on the Olympic Channel, accessible through Olympics.com and the official Olympics app for mobile devices.
Ski Mountaineering
Are you excited for Ski Mountaineering's Olympic debut at Milano Cortina 2026?
With a combination of scenic mountain settings, physical prowess, and technical skill, SkiMo is a sport that promises to entertain.
Approximately 350 athletes, representing over 30 nationalities, will showcase their abilities from November to April during the ISMF World Cup as they compete across four disciplines: Sprint, Individual, Vertical, and Mixed Relay.
The 21st edition of the senior circuit included seven stops, with France's Emily Harrop and Thibault Anselmet aiming to defend their women's and men's overall titles respectively from last season.
Read on to find out how to stay updated on all SkiMo action and get ready for the first stop next week in Val Thorens, France.
What is Ski Mountaineering?
Ski mountaineering, commonly known as SkiMo, involves competitors skiing both uphill and downhill while using mountaineering techniques to navigate through snow-covered peaks.
SkiMo formats
Sprint race: This short-format event lasts approximately three minutes and includes a climbing section, as well as a clearly marked gate descent. Athletes compete in groups of six, with the top ones of each series advancing to the next round and the best six making it to the Final. The total ascent and descent cover about 100 metres.
Individual race: Competitors must complete a minimum of three ascents and descents with a minimum elevation gain of 1,300 metres. Race times vary, but top athletes generally finish in one and a half to two hours.
Vertical race: This format consists of a single ascent on skis using skins, with no downhill skiing or boot packing. The vertical gain typically ranges from 500-700 metres.
Team race: Similar to the individual race, but it must be completed with a partner. Team members cannot be more than 30 seconds apart from each other.
Mixed Relay race: Teams of usually four athletes compete, with each individual completing a circuit one after the other. Each circuit takes approximately 15 minutes and includes two short ascents and descents, totaling a height gain between 150-180 metres.
The sprint race and mixed relay are the discplines set to feature at the Winter Olympics Milano Cortina 2026.
2023/24 ISMF Ski Mountaineering season: Athletes to watch
Women
Emily Harrop (FRA)
At 26, hailing from Bourg Saint Maurice, Harrop has clinched the past two overall World Cups and currently holds the title of defending mixed relay world champion.
Born to British parents and raised in the French Alps, her initial aspirations were to join the French alpine skiing team.
Harrop competed on the FIS youth circuit from 2013 to 2017 until an injury redirected her career towards SkiMo, where she made her World Cup debut just three years ago.
Axelle Gachet-Mollaret (FRA)
A six-time world champion and 13-time winner in World Cup events, the 31-year-old from Haute-Savoie is one of the most decorated athletes in the sport.
In 2021 she claimed her first overall World Cup title just months after giving birth to her first child.
Celia Perillat-Pessey (FRA)
The 26-year-old hailing from the alpine resort of La Clusaz finished fourth in the overall standings last season behind teammate Gachet-Mollaret.
She also claimed bronze in the team race along with Candice Bonnel.
Ana Alonso (ESP)
A 28-year-old native of Granada, Alonso embarked on her SkiMo journey a decade ago in Sierra Nevada, seeking a reconnection with nature.
With eight Spanish national championship titles under her belt, she aims to improve on her fifth-place overall finish from last season.
Alonso has notched up several podium finishes in individual and relay events, showcasing her prowess in the discipline.
Giulia Murada (ITA)
Hailing from Valtellina, Murada joined the Italian national team in 2014, inspired by her father's encouragement to try SkiMo at the age of 12.
A junior world champion in 2017, Murada specialises in individual and vertical events, earning multiple senior world championships medals.
In the last two seasons, she secured third and second place, respectively, in the overall World Cup rankings.
Tatjana Paller (GER)
A former road and track cyclist, Paller became U23 European champion in 2017, winning gold in the points race event.
After a life-threatening accident paralysed her national team colleague Kristina Vogel in 2020, Paller shifted her focus to SkiMo.
Despite being relatively new to the sport, the 28-year-old triumphed in the Alpencup on Jennerstier in just her third competition. In the final World Cup stop of the last season in Tromsø, Norway, she finished an impressive fourth in the sprint race.
Marianne Fatton (SUI)
With a mother who participated in the Winter Olympics Albertville 1992 and a father who won the European mountain running championships, Marianne Fatton was destined to excel in sports.
Inspired by her parents' training for the Patrouille des Glaciers, a ski mountaineering race organized by the Swiss Armed Forces, she embraced the sport herself.
Fatton, a sprint specialist, secured the overall World Cup in 2020. The following year, she became the sprint world champion, and in 2023, she added a silver medal to her impressive achievements.
Men
Thibault Anselmet (FRA)
At 26, hailing from Chambery, Anselmet shattered ten years of Italian dominance by securing the overall World Cup championship last season, following two consecutive second-place finishes.
Throughout the last campaign, he consistently landed in the top eight in the World Cup, and in partnership with compatriot Emily Harrop, claimed the mixed relay world title.
Anselmet's younger brother, Jérémy, also practises SkiMo and earned a bronze medal in the U20 sprint race at the World Championships.
Maximilien Drion du Chapois (BEL)
The Belgian stepped on the World Cup podium five times last season, finishing second behind Anselmet in the overall standings.
He also claimed two medals at the last World championships: silver in the vertical race and gold in combined ranking.
Oriol Cardona (ESP)
After finishing fifth overall last season, Cardona, the reigning world champion in sprint, is aiming for a podium finish this time.
The Spaniard initially excelled in athletics and alpine skiing before transitioning to SkiMo at the age of 14.
Alongside SkiMo, Cardona also competes in sky running and trail running.
Remi Bonnet (SUI)
The 28-year-old Swiss divides his time between SkiMo in the winter and mountain running and sky running during the summer.
Finishing fourth in the overall rankings last season, he also boasts 12 career World Cup wins and four world titles, including two (vertical race, individual race) from the 2023 Worlds in Boi Taull, Spain, earlier this year.
Nicolo Ernesto Canclini (ITA)
A 26-year-old law student at the University of Trento, Canclini has notched several podium finishes on the World Cup stage and at the World Championships.
Joining the Italian ski mountaineering team in 2013, he holds two national titles.
Arno Lietha (SUI)
Lietha is a 24-year-old polymechanic student from Fideris who has clinched the sprint title for past three-consecutive seasons in addition to gold at the World Championships in 2019.
He embraced SkiMo at the age of 16 after leaving alpine skiing.
Robin Galindo (FRA)
The rising star from Grenoble is the U23 sprint world champion, and at senior level, he secured a bronze medal at this year's Worlds.
Thibault Anselmet is the defending overall World Cup champion.
2023/24 ISMF Ski Mountaineering season Schedule: Venues and Dates
ISMF World Cup
Val Thorens (FRA)
- 25 Nov 2023: Sprint
- 26 Nov 2023: Mixed Relay
Arinsal – La Massana (AND)
- 20 Jan 2024: Individual
- 21 Jan 2024: Vertical
Boi Taull (ESP)
- 27 Jan 2024: Sprint
- 28 Jan 2024: Mixed Relay
Villars-sur-Ollon (SUI)
- 2 Feb 2024: Sprint
- 3 Feb 2024: Mixed Relay
- 5 Feb 2024: Individual
Val Martello (ITA)
- 22 Feb 2024: Individual
- 24 Feb 2024: Mixed Relay
- 25 Feb 2024: Sprint
Schladming (AUT)
- 1 March 2024: Vertical
- 2 March 2024: Sprint
Cortina d’Ampezzo (ITA)
- 6 Apr 2024: Vertical
- 7 Apr 2024: Individual
- 9 Apr 2024: Sprint
- 10 Apr 2024: Mixed Relay
ISMF Youth World Cup
Meribel (FRA)
- 9 Dec 2023: Sprint
- 10 Dec 2023: Individual
Bormio (ITA)
- 3 Feb 2024: Sprint
- 4 Feb 2024: Mixed Relay
Berchtesgaden (GER)
- 17 Feb 2024: Vertical
- 18 Feb 2024: Individual
Molde (NOR)
- 13 March 2024: Vertical
- 14 March 2024: Sprint
- 16 March 2024: Individual
- 17 March 2024: Mixed Relay
ISMF European Championships, Flaine & Chamonix (FRA)
- 8 Jan 2024: Vertical
- 9 Jan 2024: Sprint Youth
- 10 Jan 2024: Sprint Senior
- 11 Jan 2024: Individual
- 12 Jan 2024: Mixed Relay
ISMF World Championships, Zermatt-Verbier (SUI) (Patrouille des Glaciers)
- 20 Apr 2024: Long Distance Team
How to watch the 2023/24 ISMF Ski Mountaineering season on Olympic Channel
World Cups, Youth World Cups, and the European Championships will be streamed live on the Olympic Channel via Olympics.com. (Territorial restrictions may apply)
Viewers will have the opportunity to watch at least one day of live action from every World Cup stop throughout the season. On-demand highlights with English commentary will be accessible on the channel after the event.