Postcards from Slovenia #23: Planica in Summer

Planica ski resort, in the North of Slovenia close to both the Italian and Austrian borders, is home to one of the highest ski jumping slopes in the world. The Ski Flying World Championships are held here every year, and many world records have been both set and broken here. The centre is worth visiting in summer just to appreciate the sheer drama of this most daring of winter sports. Read on to find out more.

Planica in Facts and Figures

• Height of highest ski jump slope: 225m
• First slope built: 1930
• First world record set by Norwegian Birger Ruud in 1934: 92m jump.
• 1974: Walter Steiner jumps 177m and the new discipline of ‘ski flying’ is born.
• 1994: Toni Nieminen of Finland becomes the first to fly over 200 metres with his 203m jump.
• 2015: Slovenian Peter Prevc breaks records with his 250m jump in Vikersund, and sets the record for Planica in the same year with his 248.5m jump.

Ski Jumping or Ski Flying?

Any Brits (like me) of a certain age will remember our Ski Jumping legend, Eddie ‘The Eagle’ Edwards. Ok, so he never became a world-record breaker, but he certainly aimed to fly, and you have to give him kudos for becoming a ski-jumper in a country with very little snow, at any time of year:

The sport of ski jumping has advanced so much since its beginnings almost a century ago that contenders regularly ‘fly’ distances of over 200m. This is not a sport for the faint-hearted. If you want to see why, try climbing the more than 1000 steps to the top of the main slope, then imagine yourself skiing down the steepest part before taking to the air. If you want to go a step further, you can ride the 202m high zipline from the top of the slope to its base, reaching speeds of 85 km/h in seconds for a true adrenaline rush!

I hope you enjoyed this Postcard from Slovenia. Visit my Instagram Page for more images of Planica in Summer. For more summer activities in the North of Slovenia, check out the following posts:

The Vogel Ski Centre in Summer
Kranjska Gora in Summer

Stay tuned for more Postcards from Slovenia!