The (thin) money in skiing

Today, Ski Racing magazine was lamenting the small amount of prize money earned by the best skiers in the world. Well, this topic isn't new and two observations that can be made about this sad state of affairs.

First, alpine skiing is a marginal sport practiced mostly by white people who live in the mountains. It requires mountains, cold weather, snow, lifts and heaps of money. Because it's inherently expensive, not many, across the globe can dream of doing it.

The second and perhaps main reason a top skier earns less than a rodeo bull-rider, is because the FIS remains hopeless at sports marketing. Someone has to sell the rights to television and to market this kind of stuff, it must be fun, entertaining and adapted to the media.

This stern reality could be a hint; in fact it's the elephant in the room: What if FIS got down its high horse and began to wonder what it would take to tweak the sport and make it salable to TV audiences? What a concept!