It's now less than 50 days until the first ever cross-border downhill ski race will take place, starting in Switzerland and finishing in Italy.
However, a lack of snow is threatening the new 'Speed Opening' races from Zermatt to Cervinia. The glacier in Zermatt closed in July after the warm summer quickly melted the existing snow. Since then there has been no additional snowfall.
In the latest episode of The Ski Podcast[/url, Iain Martin interviews the CEO Christian Ziojian and legendary ski racer Pirmin Zurbriggen to find out more.
They discuss how this first ever cross-border race came into being, what the course is like, its place in the FIS calendar and what it will take to actually make it happen in the context of a summer of unprecedented temperatures.
There are four races planned, with two men's downhill events on 29/30 October and two women's races on 05/06 November.
You can listen now at The Ski Podcast website on Spotify or whereever you download your podcasts.
