Behind the scenes with the GB Skimo team

What is Skimo?

For those new to the sport, ski mountaineering (or Skimo) is, in simplest terms, competitive ski mountaineering: a fast, Lycra-clad version of what many of us enjoy in the mountains of Scotland each winter. It's been part of the British snowsports scene for over a decade, with competitors taking to the slopes since 2012 in the popular Skimo Scotland race series run by Di Gilbert. Meanwhile, a handful of ambitious British athletes have been quietly testing themselves on the European racing circuit.

The scene has always thrived, but it has remained relatively small, and what has always been lacking is a proper framework for developing the sport and its athletes. Unlike in the European Alps — where Skimo is well-resourced and supported by established national teams — the British setup has always been entirely amateur. The British Mountaineering Council (BMC) loosely acted as the representative body for those racing internationally, but it was widely acknowledged that more structure was needed for the sport to grow.

Building a National Team

The journey to a GB Skimo national team actually began back in 2013, though it gained little traction despite best efforts from Di, sportscotland, and the Mountaineering Council of Scotland (as it was known at the time). A decade later, in 2023, a chance meeting between Di and then-BMC President Andy Syme in the CIC Hut rekindled those efforts. Catalysed by the announcement that Skimo would be trialled as an Olympic event at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy, the BMC offered to do more - and the BMC Skimo Steering Group was born.

A handful of volunteers set about building a national team structure from the ground up: putting governance in place, seeking funding, and developing a plan. By autumn 2024, we were inviting applications for the first-ever GB Skimo squad.

We faced a huge number of challenges from the outset. How many athletes would apply? We were equally worried about a deluge of interest and none at all. How do you set fair selection criteria when there's no existing performance data to draw on? And how do you support promising athletes with very limited funding?

Thankfully, we muddled through - eventually selecting a team of twenty-one athletes who could proudly call themselves GB representatives.

A Season to Be Proud Of

Since then, the GB Skimo team has been racing across Europe: competing on the World Cup circuit, at the World Championships in Morgins, Switzerland, and in classic long-distance Grande Course events. Despite very limited support and no prior national setup, it has been hugely impressive to watch a group of individuals come together into a cohesive, competitive squad.

We set ourselves the stretch goal of qualifying for places at the 2026 Winter Olympics, and whilst we just missed out, we have much to be proud of as we approach our first birthday. Given relatively limited experience and a tight budget, our GB athletes have surpassed all expectations - competing with the very best in the world, and outperforming teams with much greater funding, higher pedigree, and ready access to alpine training.

Looking Ahead to Season Two

As a new national setup, we didn't get everything right first time, but every mistake has been a learning opportunity. We've done our best to consult widely on how we take the sport forward, and as we head into our second season, we're already doing things differently. Having just revised our selection policy and picked our team for 2025-26, we're also beginning to think about how we build a pathway to the 2030 Winter Olympics in France.

Given what we achieved in our maiden year, coupled with the hard-earned experience of what worked (and plenty that didn't) I have no doubt that, with the right support, this team will go from strength to strength.

Get Involved with GB Skimo

If you're interested in getting involved, either as an athlete or in a supporting role, search GB Skimo or email skimo@thebmc.co.uk. We're always on the lookout for talent, whether that's experienced Skimo racers or elite athletes from other sports who might be suited to talent transfer.

Finally, a huge thank you to everyone who has been part of GB Skimo so far - athletes, team management, the BMC, and all our Steering Group members. I'm particularly grateful to Stuart Younie of Mountaineering Scotland and Kevin McHugh of sportscotland, who have both sat on the Steering Group since day one and offered invaluable guidance to us enthusiastic amateurs.