Mind your knees when on skis!

The next most common injuries are injuries to the shoulder (9%), wrist (8%), arm (6%) and nose (6%). An injury may occasionally even mark the end of a ski trip.

Vulnerability

Bert Romani of the Dutch Ski Association claims that knee injuries are as common as they are because the knee is a complex and hence vulnerable joint. When a skier falls while turning, the knee is first free joint to absorb the fall. That is why, Romani says, skiers need to prepare thoroughly before hitting the slopes. ‘Make sure you’re in shape when you go skiing and that you’ve done muscle-building exercises for your knees and other body parts. Look around you on the slopes, mind other skiers and respect the rules. And take lessons if you need them. Even if you’ve gone skiing many times before, you might want to take a few refresher classes to learn some new techniques and prevent injuries. And if you’re on skis for the very first time, lessons are an absolute must.’

Increase in number of injuries

Europeesche Verzekeringen has seen an increase in the number of injury reports over recent years. It has identified the rise in the number of people who go skiing as one of the reasons. Lukas Kreutzer of Europeesche Verzekeringen: ‘When you’re on the slopes, you can see that the economic crisis is a thing of the past. More and more people go skiing. The number of skiers reaches its peak at Christmas and during spring break. To add insult to injury, not all novices are well-trained or prepared. You could say that some of them are accidents waiting to happen.’

Fewer ski injuries for members of Dutch Ski Association

Europeesche Verzekeringen can gather from its data that, percentage-wise, customers who are members of the Dutch Ski Association sustain a lot fewer injuries. For every 1,000 policies taken out by members of the Dutch Ski Association, Europeesche Verzekeringen receives five injury reports per winter season. For non-members, this figure is 15 for every 1,000 policies. This is a remarkable spread, which is probably attributable to the fact that the Dutch Ski Association updates its members throughout the season so that they are well prepared before going skiing.

Ready to hit the slopes

At the start of this winter season, the Dutch Ski Association joined hands with VeiligheidNL to develop a tool that helps skiers prepare for their trip (www.wintersportklaar.nl). The tool offers made-to-measure advice to both advanced skiers and beginners based on their skiing experience and their level of fitness. They can also request to receive a training schedule with muscle-building exercises. ‘This is an excellent way to prepare for a ski trip and prevent the chance of injuries,’ says Casper Dirks of VeiligheidNL.