Protecting the conditions that make winter sport possible

Australia’s winter athletes have had plenty to celebrate this year.

Following a record six-medal performance at the 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics, Australian winter sport is enjoying a well-earned moment in the spotlight.

But alongside those results, a much more difficult conversation is unfolding about the future of the environments these sports depend on.

Australian Olympic moguls skier Jackson Harvey recently joined Protect Our Winters Australia (POW) in Canberra to call for the development of a National Alpine Adaptation Plan.

The call reflects growing concern about the effects of climate change across Australia’s alpine regions and what those changes could mean for winter sport, regional communities and the environments that support them.

Australia’s changing winters

Research brought together in the Our Changing Snowscapes report shows that snow cover in the Australian Alps declined by around 30 per cent between 1954 and 2012. The length of the ski season has already contracted by between 17 and 28 per cent across most Australian alpine resorts.

These are not simply projections of what might happen in the future. The changes are already being experienced by athletes, businesses, communities and the people responsible for managing alpine environments.

For winter athletes, changing snow conditions influence where, when and how they can train and compete.

For regional communities, shorter and less reliable seasons can affect employment, tourism and local economies. Beyond sport, Australia’s alpine regions also support unique ecosystems, biodiversity and water systems that extend well beyond the mountains.

POW is calling for a coordinated national plan that brings together governments, researchers, alpine communities, Traditional Owners, businesses, sporting organisations and athletes to prepare for these changes.

Jackson believes action now is important if future athletes are to have the same opportunities he has experienced.

“It’s the next generation and the one after that that will miss out if we don’t get our act together.”

More than a winter sport issue

It may be tempting to see this as a challenge limited to skiing and snowboarding. But the conversation reaches much further. Across Australia, changing weather conditions are already influencing when, where and how sport can be played.

Extreme heat affects athlete and spectator safety. Bushfire smoke affects air quality. Floods, drought and changing rainfall patterns affect playing surfaces, facilities and community access to sport.

The Australian Sports Commission’s recently updated information on sport, climate and the environment makes the connection clear: climate and environmental conditions influence participation, facilities, events and the long-term sustainability of sport.

For sporting organisations, climate adaptation can no longer sit separately from operational planning. It needs to be considered as part of facility management, risk, governance, event planning, athlete welfare and future participation.

The role of athletes and sport

Athletes can bring an important perspective to these conversations.

They experience environmental changes directly through altered training conditions, disrupted competition calendars and changes to the places where they practise their sport.

When athletes speak about those experiences, climate change becomes less abstract. It becomes a conversation about a familiar mountain, a shortened season, a cancelled event or a young athlete who may not have the same opportunities as the generation before them.

Sporting organisations can support this work by listening to those experiences, understanding their own climate risks and working with communities and environmental experts to plan for the future.

They can also use their considerable reach to help more people understand why climate action and adaptation matter.

At Sports Environment Alliance, we believe both sides of the conversation are important. Sport must continue reducing its own environmental impact, while also preparing for the climate conditions that can no longer be avoided.

Protecting the future of sport means protecting the places, environments and communities that make it possible.

And for Australian winter sport, that work cannot wait until the snow is gone.