Key facts
- The International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) has disaffiliated Ski Snowboard India (SSI).
- The Bhartiya Ski and Snowboard Association (BSSA) has been granted full membership by FIS.
- This decision resolves a dispute that has left India's national winter sports federation in uncertainty for approximately four years.
- FIS President Johan Eliasch presented the case for BSSA's recognition during the FIS Congress.
- Indian Winter Olympian Arif Khan expressed optimism that the recognition will foster growth and development in winter sports within India.
The International Ski and Snowboard Federation (FIS) has officially recognized the Bhartiya Ski and Snowboard Association (BSSA) as the national governing body for ski and snowboard in India. This decision, made during FIS's 57th Congress in Belgrade, Serbia, marks the end of a long-standing dispute and the disaffiliation of the previous body, Ski Snowboard India (SSI).
FIS President Johan Eliasch brought the issue before the member nations, explaining that the Indian ski federation had been in a state of uncertainty for nearly four years due to legal disputes. With no objections raised by any member nation, FIS approved the disaffiliation of the former federation and granted full membership to BSSA. Eliasch noted that discussions with the Indian Olympic Association had led to the recommendation for a new federation to be established and admitted to FIS.