The international telemark skiing festival, better known as Skieda, celebrates its 25th and last anniversary this year in Livigno from 30th March to 6th April. It will have a whole host of new features for 2019 as a symbol of its farewell to all the fans of this discipline.
The telemark skiing technique, which has been known for decades due to its old but at the same time elegant style, has been building up an increasingly larger fan base over the past few years owing to the free heel charm that makes this kind of descent a sort of dance on the snow. The onset of this style is famous due to its being associated with the historical origins of skiing as a sport.
The largest telemark skiing festival in the world created in Livigno in 1994 is Skieda: the annual event for all fans of this style that has been increasingly successful over the years, attracting more and more skiers from all over the world. The festival, now in its 25th year, has been successfully repeated for more than two decades, creating a global community of around 20,000 telemarkers.
This year's edition, which celebrates the 25th anniversary has been called the "LAST TRACK" in order to celebrate a fond farewell for the last edition of this historic event.
To support those participants who have always believed actively in this event, the organisers of the Telemark Club chose this name for the 2019 edition as it closes a large circle of 10 years of Skiedas. The last track, like those left in fresh snow, is the symbol of a fond farewell to all those who took part in previous editions.
A number of events for enthusiasts will alternate during the week of Skieda between 30th March and 6th April. First and foremost, there will be an enhanced ski test, where the innovative materials of the telemark skiing world will be tested, followed by an evocative nighttime excursion with the Alpine Guides, the Transumanza (transhumance) in Val Federia, a fixed, historical appointment of the Skieda, through to a 4.0 set up in Plaza Placheda that will involve the public. Finishing in style, on the evening of Friday, 5th April, the fantastic natural setting of the Livigno woods will welcome the great farewell event, known during previous editions as the Festival of Fire. This year the Telemark Club will say goodbye to all participants and thank them for their ongoing support of the event.
Just like every year, the week of Skieda will involve the whole of Livigno and the atmosphere will be festive. Besides the events organised in the snow, there will also be concerts and parties in the local pubs in Little Tibet, as this area is also known, that will entertain the whole village with plenty of fun.
Sunrise Mattias will take place on 1st April, again during the week of the festival dedicated to telemarking. This is the memorial event for Michelin Star Chef Mattias Peri that starts at dawn, when over 250 people will set off in silence in skins and snowshoes to reach an oasis of peace surrounded by snowy peaks. At 7.15a.m. teacher Karin Pizzinini will be waiting for them in order to ‘greet the sun’. At 7.30a.m. a dawn toast will be made, during which all eyes will be turned to the sky to remember Mattias among his beloved mountains. The Gourmand Breakfast prepared by Michelin Star chefs will accompany guests in an extraordinary location: a natural amphitheatre sculpted in the snow by local artist Vania Cusini.
March opens its doors to spring with a packed schedule of events, amongst which the popular carnival party which the children in particular look forward to. This will be held both on Sunday 3rd and Tuesday 5th March 2019. There will be a big party in the streets of Little Tibet and Trepalle featuring entertainment, colourful costumes, masks, fun challenges between the various historic districts and the traditional parade of floats. Again in March, don’t miss out on a chance to spend a week on skis with the whole family thanks to our Family Week promotion. A first child aged up to 12 years, accompanied by two paying adults, will be eligible to stay at a hotel for free (or in an apartment with a 15% discount), as well as be issued a skipass, benefit from ski rental and attendance to ski school. Each additional child will get a discount of 50% on the regular rates reserved for them.
SEARCH ACCOMMODATION