Blind Skiing: Guides, Bibs, Vision Classes and Programs

Blind skiing is downhill or cross-country skiing with a sighted guide who calls the way by voice, sometimes through a radio headset. Here is how a guide and a blind skier work as a team, what the bibs mean, how the vision classes have worked since 2024, and where to find lessons in the US, the UK and Canada.

Key points

• A sighted guide skis just ahead of or behind the blind skier and calls turns, speed and terrain out loud, sometimes through a radio or headset.
• On a normal ski day, bibs say BLIND SKIER and GUIDE; in a race, the guide's bib carries a G.
• Since 1 July 2024, FIS sorts vision impaired skiers into four alpine classes (AS1 to AS4) and three Nordic classes (NS1 to NS3). The old B1 to B3 classes were archived for skiing.
• In Para alpine, all vision classes race together, and factored timing evens out the results.
• To start, take lessons with an adaptive ski program in the US, the UK or Canada.

Blind skiing at a glance

How a guide skis with a blind skier

Blind skiing is a two-person sport. The IPC's alpine page puts it simply: skiers with vision impairment are guided by sighted guides "using verbal signals to indicate the course to follow" (IPC). The guide chooses the line and talks the whole way down; the skier listens and turns on the call.

Where the guide skis

APH's VisionAware page on skiing describes two set-ups (APH):

• Guide in front. APH calls this the most common one. The guide skis slightly ahead and to one side. If you have some useful vision, "This position allows you to follow the outline of the guide's body" and mirror the rhythm of the turns.
• Guide behind. The guide follows, watches the trail ahead of you and talks you through it. APH says this works best on wide slopes with few obstacles.

The American Blind Skiing Foundation describes the same choice for its volunteers: "Our trained guides ski in front of or behind blind/VI skiers" (ABSF).

Voice, calls and headsets

The guide's voice is the steering wheel. APH says a guide calls each command before the move, so the skier has time to shift weight and set the skis. Typical calls cover turning, holding a line across the hill, slowing down, ice or soft snow, and an emergency stop. The exact words matter less than agreeing on them: APH's advice is to check that "you both attach the same meaning to each cue" before you ski.

Wind and distance can drown out a voice, so some pairs use equipment:

• Radio or Bluetooth headsets. The USOPC says Para alpine guides give directions "through voice commands or radio headsets" (USOPC). The IPC adds that "Athletes can also use Bluetooth headsets to communicate with their guides" (IPC).
• Amplifiers. APH mentions small portable amplifiers and bone-conduction headphones for recreational skiing. In cross-country racing, FIS allows an amplifier as long as it does not bother other racers.

In racing, guiding stays spoken. The FIS cross-country rules say: "Guiding must be by voice only. Radio communication between guide and competitor is allowed." (FIS Para cross-country rules, 12342.2).

Cross-country skiing with a guide

On groomed Nordic trails, APH says the guide can ski in the parallel set of tracks beside the skier and keeps up a running description of the terrain. On flat or slow sections, some pairs use a physical link: the skier holds the guide's shoulder or a shared pole. Race rules are stricter, as the section on rules below explains.

Off the snow, from the parking lot to the lift line, you get around as you do anywhere else, for example with a white cane or a sighted guide.

What the bibs on blind skiers mean

Bibs do two jobs: they tell the people around you to keep clear, and in a race they identify the guide.

On a normal ski day. APH suggests that the skier and the guide wear brightly colored vests or bibs marked BLIND SKIER and GUIDE. "This alerts other skiers to maintain distance and prevents them from skiing between you." (APH).

In a race. FIS has its own guide bib. In Para alpine races, guide bibs have a clearly visible G on the front and come in pink, yellow or orange; the back may be changed with colored tape in the pattern that "best accommodates the individual needs of vision impaired competitors" (FIS Para alpine rules, 1303.4). In Para cross-country, the guide bib carries a G or the word Guide, and yellow is the preferred color (FIS Para cross-country rules, 12314.7.2).

Vision classes in Para alpine skiing

Para alpine skiing has three categories: sitting, standing and vision impaired (IPC). FIS runs the sport's rules today, and on 1 July 2024 it changed the vision classes. Its FAQ says the new classes apply "From 01 July 2024 (2024/25 Season)" and that the old B1 to B3 classes were archived on that date (FIS FAQ). The classification rules give the same date (FIS Para alpine classification rules, 1.2).

To be eligible, a skier needs a visual acuity of LogMAR 0.6 or worse, or a visual field of 70 degrees or less (FIS). LogMAR is a scale where a higher number means less sharp vision; FIS notes that "0.0 logMAR acuity is equivalent to 20/20 acuity in Snellen notation". The classes:

AS4 is the widest door. The USOPC calls it "expanded eligibility for athletes with potentially less severe vision impairments" (USOPC). Other blind sports still mostly use B1, B2 and B3, which our guide to sports for blind people explains.

Athletes in AS1 still race in blacked-out goggles. The rules say "All competitors in class AS1 must wear blacked-out goggles" (FIS Para alpine rules, 1302.7), and the FAQ adds that this applies "for the time being". A FIS classification panel decides the class, not a coach.

Factored timing

All vision classes race in one category, and a system called factored timing lets them compete against each other (IPC). Each time is calculated with a race factor, so a skier with less vision gets a slower-running clock. An IPC feature from 2015, written before the class change, put it in one line: "Less vision equals a slower clock running speed." (IPC). The same feature says vision impaired skiers can reach top speeds of up to 105 km/h.

Vision classes in Para Nordic skiing

Para Nordic covers cross-country skiing and biathlon (USOPC). FIS uses three vision classes, with a stricter entry point than alpine: LogMAR 0.9 or worse, or a visual field of 60 degrees or less (FIS Para Nordic classification rules).

In cross-country racing, a guide is required for NS1 and NS2: "For athletes in the NS1 and NS2 Sport Class a guide is obligatory." NS3 athletes may race without one (FIS Para cross-country rules, 12342.1). NS1 skiers wear opaque shades for the whole event.

Para biathlon adds shooting. It is run by the International Biathlon Union, not FIS (IPC). Vision impaired athletes use a rifle with electro-acoustic glasses "so that athletes can shoot by aiming with their hearing": the closer the aim to the center, the higher the tone.

Race rules for guides

The FIS rulebooks treat the guide as half of the athlete. In cross-country, "In the VI category the competitor and their guide are a team." (FIS). The main alpine rules (FIS Para alpine rules, 1302 to 1304):

• A guide is required. "For all athletes with Vision Impairment the use of a Guide is obligatory."
• Who goes first. At the Paralympics, World Championships, World Cups and Continental Cups (Levels 0 and 1), AS1 skiers ski behind their guide. In lower-level races, an AS1 skier may choose to ski in front. Skiers in the other vision classes "must always ski behind their Guide in all competitions".
• No touching. No physical contact between guide and skier, or their equipment, is allowed during the race. A breach means disqualification.
• Stay close. The gap must be under four gates in slalom, three in giant slalom and two in super-G and downhill. The IPC's sport page lists shorter limits, so check the current FIS rules if you race.
• Every gate counts. "The Guide must pass through all gates."
• Quiet, please. "Public address systems, snow machines or other noise must be kept to a minimum" for vision impaired racers.
• Early look. Vision impaired racers may start course inspection ten minutes before the others.

Cross-country allows one exception to the no-contact rule: for safety, the guide may hold the athlete by one arm or one pole, without pushing or pulling. And when the guide skis the full course, "the guide will also be awarded the same medal" (FIS Para cross-country rules, 12204.3).

Blind skiing at the Paralympics

Skiing was there from the start. Para alpine skiing made its debut at the first Paralympic Winter Games, in Örnsköldsvik, Sweden, in 1976 (IPC, Alpine Canada). The IPC says that, at first, "only athletes with an amputation and vision impairment were able to compete" in alpine events. Para cross-country skiing was also there in 1976, "with standing and vision impaired athletes competing" (IPC).

Guides share the podium. The IPC notes that the Austrian Aigner siblings, with their sister Elisabeth as a guide, won nine medals at the Beijing 2022 Games in the vision impaired category (IPC).

Where to learn: adaptive ski programs

You do not need to race to ski. Lessons at an adaptive program are the usual first step.

United States

• USABA. The United States Association of Blind Athletes tells beginners to "start off with a few lessons from the mountain's adaptive ski program." If you already ski with a trained guide, it asks you to call the resort first about "meeting the requirements of the mountain's safety program" (USABA). For Nordic skiing and biathlon, USABA points to US Paralympics' Find a Club page and local Nordic clubs.
• American Blind Skiing Foundation (ABSF). A nonprofit that gives blind and visually impaired people of all ages the chance to ski and snowboard "alongside qualified sighted guides". It also trains experienced skiers to become guides (ABSF).
• Your local mountain. APH suggests asking nearby ski areas about guide services and adaptive programs, and checking whether a local agency for the blind runs ski trips (APH). For more groups, see our list of organizations for the blind.

United Kingdom

• Disability Snowsport UK (DSUK). DSUK works with "snow domes and slopes across the UK" to run lessons and groups. For skiers with a visual impairment, it says "specialist instruction will help you make the most of your skills and abilities" (DSUK).
• Snowsport England. Its adaptive page says: "Visually impaired skiers can be assisted by a guide." The same page mentions guides for visually impaired skiers in adaptive Nordic too (Snowsport England).

Canada

• Canadian Adaptive Snowsports (CADS). Founded in 1976 (CADS), CADS trains and certifies adaptive instructors across Canada. It says it has the skills to "support people with visual impairments to participate in snowsports lessons" (CADS). It reports over 2,100 participants, over 1,600 certified instructors and over 1,500 volunteers (CADS).

What to ask before your first lesson

A short call helps. Ask whether they have guides trained for blind skiers, whether they lend bibs and radios, and whether a family member can learn to guide. If you want to try cross-country, USABA says "a lesson or two will be worth the time" there too (USABA).

Where Braillito fits

Nothing on the slope needs braille: a blind skier follows a guide's voice. Braille matters off the snow, for reading and writing, and the readers of this guide include blind and low vision adults and the families of blind children who may be learning it.

Braillito, our app, teaches braille. It teaches the braille cells in lessons with exercises you play, with lives, levels and a daily streak: 59 lessons in 8 worlds in English. It also has a translator, a dictionary and a cell builder. The English lessons are uncontracted braille (grade 1); they don't teach contracted braille or transcription, and Braillito isn't a braille transcriber.

To see how a word or a name looks in braille, try the translator. Without paying, the braille translator works in any browser.

Braillito is a subscription with no free version; depending on the plan, it starts with a free trial or a discounted first period, if it's your first subscription (is Braillito free?). Get Braillito.

Frequently asked questions

Can blind people ski?

Yes. Blind and low vision people ski downhill and cross-country with a sighted guide, from first lessons to the Paralympics. Adaptive programs in the US, the UK and Canada help them start, and vision impaired skiers have raced since the first Paralympic Winter Games, in 1976.

How do blind skiers know where to go?

They listen to a guide. The guide skis just ahead of or behind them and calls each turn, change of speed and change in the snow before it happens, sometimes through a radio or Bluetooth headset. Skiers with some vision may also follow the outline of the guide's body.

What do the bibs on blind skiers mean?

On a normal ski day, bright vests marked BLIND SKIER and GUIDE ask other people to keep their distance and not to ski between the pair. In a race, the guide wears a FIS guide bib with a G on the front, and the back can carry a colored pattern chosen for the skier.

What vision classes are there in Para skiing?

Since 1 July 2024, FIS uses four classes in Para alpine skiing (AS1, AS2, AS3 and AS4) and three in Para Nordic skiing (NS1, NS2 and NS3). They replaced B1, B2 and B3 in skiing. In Para alpine, all the vision classes race together with factored timing.