This is what this year’s ski holiday will be like

If things go as they did last year, approximately 500 Danes will be injured on their skiing holiday in the coming weeks and will need help from SOS International. Most of the injuries will be knee injuries, there is a high probability that the injury will occur in Austria, and especially the age group 50-59 years are at risk.

SOS International has many years of experience in helping unfortunate Danes who are injured on their skiing holiday. Right now, the absolute busiest period of winter begins: the weeks around the schools' winter holidays, when a lot of Danes go on a skiing holiday.

Last year, SOS International helped approx. 1200 Danes who were injured on skis or snowboards during the entire ski season from 1 November to 31 March. In the winter holiday weeks 6-9 alone, 500 Danes needed assistance from SOS International.

Knees and lower legs account for half of all ski injuries, and this is no wonder, says Karin Tranberg, Division Director in Travelcare at SOS International:

- The knees are particularly challenged when we ski and snowboard because they are exposed to twisting. On a ski holiday, we use our bodies completely differently than we do on a daily basis, so it is important that you make sure to train your muscles and joints so that they are ready for the trips on the slopes.

After the knees, it is the shoulders and upper arms and elbow and forearm that typically suffer injuries.

A little more than one in five ski injuries (21%) affect a person in the age group 50-59 years. Slightly fewer injuries are accounted for by the age group 10-19 years (19% of the injuries), while the 20–29-year-olds account for 17% of the ski injuries.

You can prevent injuries

Most people know that it pays to train for a skiing holiday. But there is also a lot you can do to prevent injuries while you are away.

- Many people are tempted to make the most of their time and ski for many hours in a row. But it's a really good idea to listen to your body and remember to take breaks, says Karin Tranberg.

SOS International's advice for preventing injuries on your skiing holiday:

  • Don't overestimate your own abilities
  • Choose a ski area that suits your level
  • Take breaks when you're tired
  • Make sure to replenish your energy stores
  • Take a ski lesson
  • Be considerate of others on the slopes
  • Never combine alcohol and skiing

SOS International is a Nordic company that also helps Swedes, Norwegians and Finns with travel assistance, among other things. Norwegians are the people in the Nordic family who suffer the fewest injuries on skiing holidays. In the same period that 75 Norwegians needed help, SOS International assisted 1200 Danes and 850 Swedes.

Here's where Danes got the most ski injuries:

  1. Austria (48%)
  2. Italy (17%)
  3. France (13%)
  4. Norway (10%)
  5. Sweden (6%)

Newer ski destinations can also be tracked in the ski injury statistics. SOS International has, among other things, helped Norwegians, Swedes, and Danes with ski injuries in Japan, Andora, Georgia, and North Macedonia in 2024

Source: SOS International, calculated in the period 1 November 2023 to 31 March 2024

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