natural snow missing in Nove Mesto

In this village in the Czech Republic where the biathlon world championships take place, the organizers are increasing the use of artificial snow in the absence of natural snow. A recurring problem with global warming.

In Nove Mesto where the Biathlon Worlds started on Wednesday February 7, we would almost have to launch a call for witnesses to find the missing snow, a bit like the letter “e” in the novel by Georges Pérec “Disappearance”. “In this small village in the Czech Republic, the World Cup site is almost scary to see,” says the newspaper the Team, between the first-rate quality snow and the wind that sweeps the trails not yet marked…” We are very far from the Santa Claus postcard with the snowy trees, to the point that the French shooting coach, whose The Team recalls that he “is one of those who experienced real winters”, wonders if we should not postpone certain events, while observing trucks and backhoe loaders taking turns to distribute artificial snow. Artificial snow which will have difficulty holding, the temperatures forecast being well above 0 degrees, and the rain taking advantage of the situation to prevail.

The story repeats itself

In 2023, the snow had already dried up at the biathlon world championships in Grand-Bornand in France, and we had seen the “truck ballet” carrying thousands of cubic meters of snow, and these striking images of simple tongues of cultivated snow winding through the middle of a green valley. But that’s how it is. Rather than launching an international wanted notice and uniting all the forces of the world today and tomorrow to try to find the snow, we prefer to make it, store it, transport it as best we can in an attempt to make forget his disappearance.

Disappearance about which the Court of Auditors is warning this week, criticizing the short-term management of ski resorts which, by producing snow with cannons, aggravate the causes of climate change, and many other disappearances to come, start with that of skiing…”It’s hard to think that our sport could disappear.” lamented this way on Wednesday in the newspaper Release the new darling of alpine skiing. Cyprien Sarrazin who misses the fresh snow, the “puff” of his youth, the real winters, those of yesterday, those of the 20th century, so far away but already vanished too.

So many disappearances, all linked to each other, and for which the investigations will be quickly resolved, the investigators not having to look far for the culprits. Finally, the disappearance of the snow is already a closed case