This campaign took place in 2016 but the page remains open for donations to my season, should you wish to make one!

Firstly, thanks for taking the time to visit my page, any support you can give will be much appreciated and will help me towards fast skis and hopefully my big goal of a top 30 performance in cross country skiing at the 2018 Olympic games!

Cross country skiing is an endurance sport in which, to do well, competitors must ski downhill at break neck speeds, uphill with lung bursting effort and along flat terrain with near perfect efficiency. Races range from one to ninety kilometres and elite competitors are amongst the fittest athletes in the world. The decisive factor in races is the average speed at which skis glide across the snow. Although a lot if this comes down to person standing on the skis, i.e. their technique and fitness, a considerable part is dictated by the quality of the skis themselves. Put simply, to win, the best skier in the world still needs world class skis!

I’m asking you to help me towards the cost of obtaining world class skis to allow me to compete on a level playing field with the world’s best skiers.

About Me: 

I’m a British cross country skier from Inverurie, Aberdeenshire. Having started skiing at the age of 8 at an open day at the Huntly Nordic ski centre I progressed through to the British Nordic development squad and onto the national team, competing at my first Olympic games in Sochi.

I have just completed a degree in chemical engineering at the University of Edinburgh, where I combined four years of full time study with training. With under two years to go until the next Olympics I’m now training full time and have moved to Lillehammer, Norway, in order to train with some of the best skiers in the World. This year I’ll train around 900 hours in order to prepare my body to compete with the best. With the bulk of this being put in the summer, and the winter being spent away racing, little time is left for obtaining significant income from work. For the next two years I’ve been fortunate enough to receive funding from SportScotland to help towards my living costs in Norway but unfortunately the cost of skis will not be covered!

The Goal:

In order to accommodate the two different competition disciplines, classical and skating, I need different skis for each. Similarly, different snow conditions require subtly different skis, varying in both the stiffness and the microstructure in the base. To cover all situations as thriftily as possible I need 10 pairs of top quality skis. Now, in order to ensure skis are “top quality” one must test, test and test again to find skis that will fit the bill, as, largely being constructed from wood, no two pairs are alike. In collaboration with Salomon and the British ski team’s technicians, I have a unique opportunity to have skis picked out specially, as well as test them thoroughly on snow prior to the racing season. Salomon have made me a generous offer whereby each pair will cost £200, hence my target total of £2000, this falls outside my budget for the season so I’m asking for your help!!

If you cannot or do not wish to donate, but do wish to give me a helping hand with this project then PLEASE share this on social media as well as with anyone to who you think it may interest.

I also have a blog if you wish to read more – https://callumsmithskiblog.com