Olympians warn of climate change impact on sport

Olympians have warned US president Barack Obama that climate change is putting winter sports’ survival at risk.

Seventy-five champions have penned a letter to the White House warning that a run of record warm years and little snowfall has put the survival of their sports at risk.

What’s more, global warming is also harming a winter tourism industry that is worth some $12 billion a year to the US.

Among the athletes contributing to the letter were pro snowboarder Jeremy Jones and Olympians Julia Mancuso and Lindsey Jacobellis.

They said: "As professional athletes, representing a community of 23 million winter sports enthusiasts, we're witnessing climate change first-hand.

“Last year was the warmest year on record, and once again, we're currently experiencing another winter season of inconsistent snow and questionable extremes. Without a doubt, winter is in trouble.”

In order to tackle the issue, the athletes urged Obama to implement two key measures that environmental groups have been recommending. They called for new rules to clean up the country’s coal-fired power plants, and shut down the the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline project.

This is the latest measure by environmental campaigners aiming to get Obama to come through on his election promises. The president began his second term by promising he would act on climate change, saying: "If Congress won't act soon to protect future generations, I will."

This comes amid concerns from environmental campaigners who are worried that Obama may give the green light to a Keystone XL pipeline, which would deplete the carbon stores in the Alberta tar sands.

However, Obama has hinted that he does not yet see a political opportunity at which he could take the actions that campaigners are demanding. He also does not appear to be planning to implement measures to cut America’s use of fossil fuels in the near future.