The 46th Alpine World Ski Championships have confirmed Cortina d’Ampezzo as one of the most important locations for competitive skiing at an international level, projecting the Queen of the Dolomites towards the Olympic dream of Milano-Cortina 2026. The sports event was followed by 500 million people worldwide, via television and new media, making it possible for the public to take part “remotely”.
The performance of the Phygital Strategy proves the strength of these tools in involving the community of enthusiasts and the excellent choices made by Fondazione Cortina 2021.
A Phygital Strategy bridges the divide between the physical and digital world to provide a unique interactive experience for users, where these two worlds are blended into one. Phygital experiences are immersive, interactive real-time experiences that offer immediate engagement.
3.8 million pages were visualized on the World Championship website, with more than 625 thousand unique visitors and a rate of return of 25%. There were 336 hours of streaming at the virtual Media Centre, with 1,077 registered journalists, almost 600 news pieces distributed, and over 886 thousand cam views. Great success also for the Cortina 2021 Official App, which achieved 37 thousand downloads, with more than 77 thousand completed missions and 2 thousand prizes awarded. The digital channels registered more than 2.3 million active users, with an average increase in the fanbase of 23.6%, 20.3 million impressions, and over 55,000 user-generated #Cortina2021 content.
Overall, the Alpine World Ski Championships were followed in 190 countries, confirming the event as a formidable international showcase for Cortina d’Ampezzo, the Dolomites, and the entire nation.
Cortina 2021 has provided a model for a new normal of major international sports events in the Covid era, allowing athletes, teams, fans, and enthusiasts all over the world to return to experience the thrill of international races, by applying management skills and professionalism in the organization.
“I am really proud of the work done, I thank Valerio Giacobbi and the whole team that have never given up during these challenging months of changing scenarios, and continuously having to come up with innovative solutions and new strategic approaches. We have delivered an experience that will make history and provided a wealth of knowledge and skills fundamental for the future and for the next great milestone of Milan-Cortina 2026, to the community of Cortina d’Ampezzo and to Italy “, said Alessandro Benetton, President of Fondazione Cortina 2021.
“Receiving everyone’s applause fills us with satisfaction. Our organizational success is the victory of a workgroup, of a territory, of companies that have believed in us and institutions that placed themselves at the service of a country that wanted at all costs to demonstrate that it is necessary to look to the future with confidence and enthusiasm, despite adversities", said Valerio Giacobbi, CEO of Fondazione Cortina 2021.
