New Film Confirms Ski Ballet is "Alive and Well"

Originally posted on Powder | By Izzy Lidsky | Last updated Mar 11, 2025 7:07 AM ET

A new film on the greatest discipline of skiing to exist has been released, and no, I'm not talking about Skijoring.

What is the greatest discipline of skiing, you ask? Consider this: a young Izzy grew up enthralled by life's two most graceful pursuits— ballet and skiing.

Although different in many ways, the similarities between the two married perfectly in her mind. The celebration of the magic of winter (at least in the Nutcracker ballet...), the flowy and artful, yet powerful movements of both, and perhaps most of all, that it didn't matter if she lost a toenail doing one because the other was likely to take it from her eventually.

It seems others had a similar thought and thus the sport of ski ballet was born. Ski ballet essentially combines aerial gymnastics, dance, and skiing in a display of athleticism, rhythm, and art.

Think figure skating on skis... kind of...

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Ski ballet saw its peak in the 1970s and 1980s and was even included in the 1988 and 1992 Winter Olympic Games as a demonstration sport. However, the sport's popularity declined rapidly after 1992 due to the rise of other ski disciplines and all competitions had ceased by 2000.

Although the competitive days of ski ballet might be over, on March 2, 2025, Swiss film company MGG released a film that celebrated and chronicled the history of the sport and its place in skiing. You can watch below and keep reading to learn more about the film.

Dancing on the Edge: A Ski Ballet Story takes viewers through three generations of the sport from its heyday to the ending of the competition days. Although the sport itself is one of the most niche disciplines of skiing, the film features recognizable names like Julien Reigner, the ski shaper for Black Crows, and evidently an avid ex-ski ballet participant.

The film's release was celebrated by the second annual Winter Waltz Event at Verbier, which welcomed 30 former professional ski ballet athletes in the largest gathering of the sport in 25 years. The event was both celebratory and deeply emotional for the athletes, many of whom had not seen each other since FIS stopped competitions in 2000.

You can also watch the event recap below (trust me, you want to watch it).

The film and accompanying event seek to remind viewers that although ski ballet truly occupies its own lane when it comes to skiing, at its core, it's the same as any other discipline: a community formed by those with a shared love of winter and an athletic expression on skis.

This article first appeared on Powder and was syndicated with permission.

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