Calgary (AB), Canada – Alpine Canada Alpin, the governing body of ski racing in Canada, is hosting a two-day Safety Summit this week with the aim of reducing injuries in the sport.

The summit, which is being held today and Wednesday at Canada Olympic Park in Calgary, brings together leading doctors, equipment specialists, athletes, coaches and other members of the ski community.

“We want to significantly reduce the amount of serious injuries in our sport,” said Max Gartner, president of Alpine Canada Alpin. “We want to keep it exciting but at the same time, make it as safe as possible.”

The summit, the first of its kind held in Canada, will focus primarily on domestic programs. Participants will examine preventative action to reduce the risk of skiers sustaining injuries.

In addition to looking at domestic programs, the summit will also explore how safety initiatives can be pursued in conjunction with the International Ski Federation (FIS).

“Our goal is to develop domestic recommendations we can implement immediately,” said Gartner. “We will also develop a strategy for working with FIS to reduce injuries at the World Cup level.”

The Canadian Alpine Ski Team was one of several national teams hit with a number of serious injuries in the 2010-11 season. Manuel Osborne-Paradis, of Vancouver, British Columbia, who suffered a torn knee and broken leg in January, is one of several national team athletes who will attend the summit. His teammate Kelly VanderBeek, of Kitchener, Ontario, will be one of the guest speakers and will lead a discussion on safety initiatives at the World Cup level.

“There’s a lot of talk about the use of air bags and other safety initiatives but some of these things will take time. From an athlete’s point of view, that’s not good enough,” said VanderBeek, who has been part of the national team since 2000 and is currently recovering from a serious knee injury. “There are things we can do today to make the sport safer.”