New Year’s Day 2009 brought an alarming and fatal skiing accident to the attention of the skiing world. A woman was killed on the slopes in Kitzbuhel in Austria after she collided with a German politician. He survived the crash, although he does not remember what happened. He was wearing a helmet at the time – but the lady who died was not. And head injuries were deemed to be the cause of her unfortunate and untimely death.
This accident has resulted in one of the fastest laws to be passed in Austria in recent times. Under 14s who are on the slopes in any ski resort in Austria must now wear a helmet. If they do not then they will be breaking the law.
But this new law does not go far enough, according to some. After all, if the law had been in place before this accident occurred, the same outcome would have happened since neither party was under the age of 14. This is why politicians are being asked to extend this new law to cover everyone who takes to the slopes.
Even more unfortunate is the fact that this accident – perhaps publicised slightly more given the status of the man who survived – was not the first to occur this winter. Sixteen other people have already died, and while no one wants to hear about more there is always the chance that the woman who lost her life on New Year’s Day will not be the last.
There have been some changes already however, since some people have said they have bought and worn helmets for the first time since these accidents. It does seem strange though that more skiers don’t protect themselves with helmets. We often hear about the need for cyclists to wear crash helmets and there is often a call for a change in the law so that it is made compulsory, but skiing doesn’t seem to attract the same attention.
Not before now, anyway. It could be that this winter proves to be the turning point. If Austria does decide to extend the law and force all skiers to wear helmets before heading out onto the pistes, then other countries would surely do the same. Is this just a matter of everyone waiting for someone else to make the first move?
The new law is a good step in the right direction. Children will now be protected to a greater degree than they were before. But it is the adults who are more experienced; who have had more years on the slopes; and who are destined to go faster and push themselves more as a result.
Let’s not forget that the speed you can get up to on a pair of skis can be really quite alarming. There are reasons why sports skiers wear helmets in competition – and those same reasons should really apply to all other skiers too. So why not pre-empt any laws this year, and take a helmet with you when you go on the slopes?