Wanaka, New Zealand (Tuesday, August 1, 2006) - World Cup ski racers are descending upon New Zealand's Treble Cone ski area to train on the mountain outside of Wanaka.

Austrian Benjamin Raich will be among the World Cup ski racers training at New Zealand's Treble Cone ski area this season. (photo: Treble Cone)

National ski teams from Austria, Norway, Sweden and the U.K. will be based at Treble Cone for the duration of their southern hemisphere training. Athletes training at Treble Cone this year include the winners of 15 medals at the 2006 Winter Olympic Games in Torino, Italy.

Such was the demand for training slots at Treble Cone this season that the ski area was unable to accommodate all those who expressed interest.

“This international exposure is fantastic for the mountain,” said Treble Cone Area Manager Jackie van der Voort. “We’ve got teams returning every year to Treble Cone and the work they put in here has really paid off – this is evident in the number of Olympic medal winners we’ve got training here this year.

“It also raises our profile as the top southern hemisphere training ground for international ski teams. We’ve been forced to turn teams away because there were so many wanting to come. But we must limit the amount of terrain we give over to race training so that the public have full access to the mountain.”

“Once more, Treble Cone is the first choice of the best ski racers in the world," added Treble Cone Snowsports Manager Guenther Birgmann. "And this year we have the Olympic medals to prove it. Treble Cone has proved to be the ski area where the world’s elite athletes can attain the training for the highest successes in their career.

“Summer earth works have yielded an amazing trail on which the racers will train. The ‘Big Skite’ trail is both super-wide and immaculately groomed, giving the optimum training conditions for the teams early in the morning," Birgmann continued.

The arrival of the northern hemisphere teams is a highlight in what has already been a fantastic year for Treble Cone. The ski field is enjoying record visitor numbers as well as some of the best snow early winter conditions in the past decade.

The first of the international teams to arrive next week is the Austrian Men’s World Cup Slalom and Giant Slalom team. Double Olympic gold medalist at Torino 2006, Benjamin Raich, and double Olympic medalist Hermann Maier are among the athletes.

There is also the chance this year to watch the Olympic champions in action, with guided tours for members of the public to view the training sessions at Treble Cone.

The full list of teams training at Treble Cone this season is as follows:

• Austrian Men’s World Cup Slalom and Giant Slalom – arriving August 5th
• Austrian Men’s World Cup Team 3 – arriving August 8th
• Austrian Men’s World Cup Team 4 – arriving August 11th
• Norwegian Men’s Ski Team – arriving August 15th
• Austrian Women’s World Cup Slalom and Giant Slalom team – arriving August 22nd
• Austrian Women’s World Cup Team 3 – arriving August 22nd
• British Men’s Ski Team – arriving August 25th
• Swedish Men’s Ski Team – arriving September 1st
• Swedish Women’s Ski Team – arriving September 1st