From ban to revolution: FPV drones in winter sports
- HeliFoto.ch
- Aug 31
- 2 min read
The turning point
• Incident 2015: During the World Cup slalom in Madonna di Campiglio, a TV drone crashed onto the piste in close proximity to Marcel Hirscher.
→ For safety reasons, drones were banned over competition courses.
• 2020–2024: Rapid advancements in FPV racing drones: lighter designs, protected propellers, redundancy systems, high-precision positioning, and specialized pilots.
• Beijing 2022: First cautious return in clearly defined and strictly controlled areas of operation.
• Milan–Cortina 2026: High-speed FPV will become a standard part of TV coverage in alpine disciplines and ice track sports.
Drones fly through ice channels at speeds of up to 170 km/h – with a distance of centimeters to the walls and on an almost identical line to the athletes.
The broadcasters' conclusion: Classic cameras only inadequately convey speed, intensity, and risk.
Why do FPV drones work today?
Speed matching: FPV drones reach speeds of 150–180 km/h and can accompany skiers, snowboarders, sledders or cross-country skiers on a similar line.
Predefined flight corridors: Mapped routes + stabilization ensure centimeter-level distances to nets/ice walls.
Safety design: Propeller guards, dual sensors, fail-safes.
Pilot training: Simulation (Digital Twin) + dozens of real training flights per day.
Why do broadcasters want the small FPV drones?
Classic cameras (towers, cable cameras, telephoto lenses) compress depth and often make speed and gradient appear lower than they actually are.
FPV drones, on the other hand:
Parallax and proximity are preserved – speed and terrain become immediately perceptible!
They make line choice and compression visible, which athletes talk about.
deliver social media-friendly clips for younger target groups
Result: Increased engagement in sports that were previously difficult for casual spectators to access – such as luge, bobsleigh or downhill skiing.
Athlete's perspective regarding drones!
• Concerns: Noise, distraction, safety.
• In practice: Wind resistance and helmet dampen noise; pilots stay outside the ideal racing line; rules define minimum distances.
• Trend: Skepticism is decreasing because the difficulty and risk are being portrayed more realistically.
Conclusion: Drones have become established because technical safety, pilot expertise, and the need for stronger storytelling have all matured simultaneously. Winter sports, in particular, benefit enormously from this – the Olympic productions are setting a new visual standard for the future.
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