Forget climate change; welcome to year-round skiing — of a sort. From next year cross-country skiers at a top German resort will also be donning their skis in mid-summer, thanks to the construction of the world’s most advanced “ski tunnelâ€.
The above-ground concrete tube, which will be built on a course snaking 2km through the forests around Oberhof, eastern Germany, will have a bed of artificial snow, special lighting and windows and advanced air conditioning, according to Ralf Luther, the official responsible for the €13m ($20m, £10m) publicly funded project.
The 17 meter-wide tunnel, which won planning permission this month, “will be a first for Germany and the most advanced in the worldâ€, Mr Luther said. A few similar tubes in Finland, Sweden and Siberia were “rather basic by comparisonâ€, he added.
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Source: www.ft.com