Whistler Blackcomb have confirmed they won’t open their glacier for summer skiing this June and July. The resort will be open for summer tourism, but the resort’s chief operating officer Geoff Buchheister has told staff that with the onus firmly on safety in relation to the COVID-19 pandemic, snowsports would mean an unacceptable "…layer of complexity over an already complex situation," "By narrowing our focus to our summer operation, we can ensure that our team is preparing a plan that is careful, measured and realistic, while in keeping with provincial health guidelines," he told staff in a memo. Whistler has offered glacier skiing on the Blackcomb Glacier every summer for many decades. The glacier is booked up by race team

Last Updated: 2 June 2020 at 15.10 GMT (Updates so far since 5 May: 55) Country-By-Country Update on what’s happening to ski resorts there. Argentina Australia Chile Lesotho New Zealand South Africa Austria Canada China France Italy Japan Poland Scotland Slovak Republic Slovenia Sweden Switzerland USA Headlines: NEW: Whistler's Blackcomb Glacier won't open for summer skiing this year. (June 2nd)NEW: Italy's Passo Stelvio expected to open for international race team training, but not public access, from June 3rd. Slovakia's Petra Vlhova and upcoming star Alice Robinson from New Zealand are also reported to be expected to be training there according to Italian media (June 1st). NEW: Japan's Gassan ski area re-opens until July. (June 1)Australian ski resorts firm-up 2020 season opening dates - with most opening

At the time of my last report a few ski areas around Japan were still bravely remaining open in increasingly pressured circumstances. That situation did not last too long as the Japanese government was forced to announce a country-wide ‘state of emergency’. Interestingly, the Japanese government is not actually able to legally declare a ‘lockdown’ like other countries have experienced over the last few months. The Japan state of emergency was essentially more of a strong request for co-operation, and it was one that most people and businesses complied with. As of late May, the state of emergency has now been lifted in all regions of Japan. There has been skiing and snowboarding available in May though. The Yokoteyama and

Following the news that ski resorts in the Australian province of Victoria could open from 22nd June, made by the province’s government a few days ago, ski areas in New South Wales where most of the rest of Australia’s main ski areas are located have also been given the go ahead from the same date.  However only some ski areas say they’ll open on Monday 22nd, with others opting for Wednesday 24th. Ski areas are also stressing there’ll be fewer people allowed in the mountains for virus-safety reasons and that advance booking is essential to ensure your space. Skiers and snowboarders will only be able to access the resorts with a pre-purchased pass or lift tickets; on-the-day lift ticket purchases

Arapahoe Basin ski area in Colorado has resorted to selling lift tickets for its re-opening day, 27th May, by lottery after an online ticket reservation system failed to cope with demand. “Due to incredibly high volume, we are not able to use our original reservation system. Access to Arapahoe Basin, at this time, will be via a random drawing. We are only doing one day at a time. …No need to rush. One entry per person. No purchase necessary to enter this random drawing,” an online statement posted on the 26th said. Those who win in the lottery will then be contacted have the option to purchase up to four $99 lift tickets. Arapahoe Basin is the fourth US ski