The print media coverage of skiing and snowboarding in Britain: Does it have to be downhill all the way?

Content analyses of sport in the media have primarily focused on mainstream sports or major sporting events, and few have looked at winter sports or studied the print media in Britain. This article seeks to address this gap by examining the British print media portrayal of athletes representing Snowsport GB - the national governing body for skiing and snowboarding - in the season 2004-2005. Concentrating on themes common to other media content analyses and some that have not been widely explored before - gender, stardom and risk - this article analyses representations of British male and female skiers and snowboarders. Differences in coverage according to type of snowsport (skiing or snowboarding) are identified and recommendations for further research into the media coverage of snowsport in Britain are made.