English News, Weather and Daily Events - March 24, 2026

Weather

A beautiful day today with the sun shining all day, A few patches of cirrus clouds decorate the sky.  Winds will be from the East between 15/25 km/h at 3000 m in the morning, then from the North between 10/15 km/h in the afternoon.

Currently at 8am it is  -7°C up at the Pisaillas, -6°C at the top of Bellevarde, -6 degrees up on solaise and -6°C here in town. Today we can expect a top of 5°C in the village.

Roads

The roads are clear.

Local News

Denise Dumas's 100th Birthday

Denise Dumas is celebrating her 100th birthday today (see photo). Born on March 24, 1926, Denise Dumas arrived in Val d'Isère in 1947. She worked at the Hôtel du Dôme before becoming a waitress until 1953 for the Billard canteen, a company involved in the construction of the Tignes dam. It was during this time that she met her husband, who was a cook. The Dumas family later bought the canteen and the chalet to create the Refuge du Skieur hotel and restaurant and the Le Petit Pousset daycare center. She now lives in a retirement home in Bozel, near her nephews and nieces. We wish her a very happy birthday.

Bird Day

Due to the weather forecast for Thursday, Bird Day has been postponed to today with a change to the original program. The parakite competition will indeed take place, featuring the 15 best male and 6 best female pilots in the world. A parakite is a mini-wing with a reflex profile, whose angle of attack is controlled directly with the controls and falls somewhere between classic paragliding and speed riding. This will be the world's first competition of its kind, conceived by Léo Taillefer.

The competition, in a flight and ski format, will consist of three rounds on three different mountains, starting at 9:30 am.

The unique aspect of this competition is that the pilots must complete all three rounds with the same ski and wing equipment. The awards ceremony will be held at 5:00 pm at the restaurant located in the Vallée du Manchet, and the event will be followed by a concert by Dafra in a seasonal bar in the village center. Bird Day will be a spectacular sight, best viewed from the Manchet Valley.

Avalanche Dog Training

Around twenty avalanche rescue dog handlers from the Haute-Tarentaise region have been training since yesterday and will continue until today near Datcha. This is one of four mandatory exercises per season to maintain their skills and ensure their ability to respond effectively to adverse weather conditions. The handler-dog teams are practicing avalanche rescue simulations. Some young dogs are also undergoing training at the resort before their official refresher course scheduled for next week.

Sports Club AGM

The Val d'Isère Sports Club held its annual general meeting last night, with around forty people in attendance. President Pierre-Julien Berthet presented his report, followed by the treasurer's financial report and the auditor's report. The governance structure of the Sports Club, comprised of 14 elected members and 14 coaches in the ski and pre-club sections, was reviewed, along with its values ​​and mission. In April 2025, the Sports Club discontinued its FIS group membership and offered a training camp for U16 athletes in Switzerland and a coaching course with Geromino. Sports Club Director Ingrid Jacquemod also highlighted the Club's commitment to combating violence and harassment in sports through awareness campaigns for coaches and young athletes. The Val d'Isère Sports Club is ranked 11th in the 2024/2025 AFESA national rankings and 18th in the 2024/2025 AFESA Top Youth Trophy. After presenting the impressive results of the ski section athletes, the board introduced the other sections, including climbing and judo, which are very popular with around thirty children participating in each discipline. The gymnastics section offered to primary school children, the football section with 15 children and about twenty adults, the endurance section which includes 6 licensed cyclists, 10 licensed trail runners, and active members for ski touring and cross-country skiing. Three other sections were discussed: rugby, which was put on hold last summer, the motorcycling section with 16 members, and finally, the yoga section. The budget approved by the Board of Directors for the 2025/2026 fiscal year was also presented, as were the various major events organized by the Sports Club, such as the 70th anniversary of the Critérium de la Première Neige (First Snow Criterium), the charity gala, the Scara, the Avaline Trax, the Iserane, and the High Trail Vanoise, which will host the French Trail and Mountain Running Championships. The session ended with discussions with the public about offering children in the ski section the opportunity to practice yoga or another discipline and organizing a week-long training camp for the B groups. The general meeting was followed by a friendly drink.