Slowing down gets S pore alpine skier Faiz Basha closer to Winter Olympics berth

SINGAPORE – Singaporean alpine skier Faiz Basha can hit speeds of up to 140kmh as he descends steep, snow-covered slopes while navigating sharp turns on the courses.

In a sport driven by speed, however, the biggest lesson that skiing has taught the 23-year-old is the value of patience, a trait that has helped him keep his Winter Olympic dream alive amid setbacks.

Five years ago, his hopes of qualifying for the 2020 Lausanne Winter Youth Olympics were shattered after a crash during a competition left him with a tear in his intestines – the accident nearly caused him to walk away from the sport.

His hunt for a spot at the 2022 Beijing Winter Games was paused by national service commitments.

Yet he persevered and in January, Faiz moved a step closer to his goal, meeting the minimum qualification criteria for the slalom event at the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo.

Looking back on the journey, he said: “When you’re in school, you do things and you get the results very fast but for skiing, it takes a lot more patience.

“It takes years and sometimes you don’t see the results until the following season. It’s a really holistic bigger picture which I can see in terms of personal development and patience.”

He was speaking to The Straits Times on the sidelines of an event at the Singapore Ski Snowboard Academy at Marina Square, where he conducted a sharing session during a short trip back home.

The Singapore Ski and Snowboard Association (SSSA) still needs to complete its “validation and selection process” to ensure that he meets its eligibility and selection criteria, before submitting the nomination to the Singapore National Olympic Council (SNOC) for approval ahead of the 2026 Winter Games in Italy.

Faiz will be the