The Department of Human Movement Studies of the UO organizes annual ski and snowboard courses for students. This year, the department was able to provide courses for 316 participants who signed up for training to improve their technique in skiing or snowboarding. The courses are regularly held in the Giant Mountains, the Beskydy mountains as well as in Austria and Italy. Students have to train hard during the week-long period so that they can successfully obtain credits in various disciplines. If they manage to master more demanding conditions, they have the opportunity to obtain a license which can be used for teaching or training.

This year, for the first time ever, it was possible to organize a course for foreign students. Both trainings took place in the ski resort SKI Bílá, where rentals of full ski or snowboard sets were provided. The first Erasmus-snowboarding course took place from 7th to 11th January with the participation of one student from Valencia, Spain. The second Erasmus-skiing course took place from the 21st to 26th January with the participation of four Korean students and two Spanish students.

We wanted to offer the international students an opportunity to experience and learn something new.

Jan Plešek, assistant and a coordinator for internationalization at the Department of Human Movement Studies: “We wanted to offer international students the opportunity to experience and learn something new. In their countries, the conditions for winter sports and winter activities are often impossible so we expected some interest from their side. This was already confirmed in the last academic year when we had a relatively large number of applicants. However, due to the situation with Covid-19 we were forced to cancel all courses. That is why I am extremely happy that we managed to organize it this year, even though the conditions were still difficult. I think that all involved parties enjoyed the course. Most of the students were skiing or snowboarding for the first time ever in their lives. I would like to give a big compliment to all of them for their attitude, discipline, patience, will and huge progress they made during the training. They can be proud of themselves.”

Most of the students were skiing or snowboarding for the first time in their lives.

Here are some comments from the students themselves:

Ana Lía (Spain, Faculty of Education, UO): “The skiing course was a fantastic experience for me! It was my first time skiing but our mates and teachers make everything easier! I am looking forward to going skiing soon. We were lucky because the weather was good. We had sunny and snowy days but without anything that could disturb our activity. The fact that a lot of children skied so well surprised me!!”

Paola (Spain, Faculty of Education, UO): “Certainly, whether you have skied before or not, I highly recommend the course. I had already skied before, but it has been an incredible and different experience; since where I usually go to ski in Spain it doesn’t usually snow as much as here, and it’s difficult to ski in totally virgin snow. I have learned and enjoyed a lot. The landscape was amazing, the teachers very attentive and close, the classmates very pleasant… In conclusion, a fantastic atmosphere! Now I can say that I have skied in the Czech Republic!”

Subeen Kim (South Korea, Faculty of Arts, UO): “It was nice to see the snow-capped mountains every day.  When I first learned to ski, I found that snow didn’t hurt me if I fell down. We had a great time thanks to good teachers and good students.”

Yeonjeong Kim (South Korea, Faculty of Education, UO): “It was my first ski. Looking at the snow-covered high slope at first, I was so afraid that I couldn’t ride well or get hurt. Although I fell down a lot in the process of learning, I gradually learned the charm of skiing. After endless support from a good teacher, I felt I was riding better and better. The teachers always checked our health and they encouraged students not to lose confidence. The best thing was that I am now enjoying skiing and have a lot of confidence in skiing. Even if I go back to Korea, I will ski reminding the class at that time. I was proud of myself for challenging something and finally doing it. This ski class was really good in many ways. Thank you so much, professors.

Translation: Marek Suchanek