It’s 10 years since Sheffield Ski Village, which delivered a number of Team GB’s greatest ski and snowboard starts of the modern era, was destroyed by a series of arson attacks.
The centre, which claimed to have Europe’s largest network of dry ski slopes, was less than 25 years old, having opened in 1988, when it was progressively destroyed in more than 50 arson attacks over four years which began at the end of April, 2012.
The complex had a series of ski slopes and a freestyle park consisting of a half pipe, hip jump, kicker, a quarter pipe and various grind rails. It was here that future stars like James ‘Woodsy’ Woods (below) and Katie Summerhayes learned their skills. Ellie Koyander (Women’s Moguls, 2010 Winter Olympics) and Paddy Graham (Pro freeskier also credit Sheffield among their training grounds.
There has been a long-running campaign to rebuild the centre which is ongoing. Sheffield City Council sought new operators for the site in 2016 and named Extreme as their preferred candidate in 2017 with a £22.5 million plan for a multi-sport centre. This did not happen however.
The next stage in the reopening plan is reported to be the creation of a new £6m access road to the site which involves agreement between Sheffield City Council, Network Rail and the land owners.