More than 200 TASIS High School students spent the long weekend of February 23–26 in Engelberg, where they enjoyed skiing, snowboarding, snowshoeing, sledding, and other winter activities. The capstone of the week was the Fleming Cup race, a beloved TASIS tradition that was revived last year after a lengthy hiatus. 

For decades, when the entire High School would relocate to a Swiss ski resort for two weeks at the end of the winter holiday—first in 1959 to Andermatt, out of necessity, and later to St. Moritz or Crans-Montana—the Fleming Cup was awarded to the skier who completed a slalom run in the fastest time. The latest iteration includes a snowboarding component, with the fastest male and female in each category earning a cup.

Following a morning of practice runs, 35 skiers and snowboarders competed fiercely for the 2022 Fleming Cup on the afternoon of February 25 with their friends and teachers cheering them on. In the end, Alex Fraschina ’23 (fastest male skier and faster time overall), Gloria Benfenati ’25 (fastest female skier), Sebastian Airolo ’25 (fastest male snowboarder), and Jimena Escalante Gomez ’23 (fastest female snowboarder) emerged as this year’s winners. Congratulations to each of them!

Academic Travel Director Natalie Philpot, who advocated for the return of the Fleming Cup last year, was pleased to see a 60 percent increase in the number of participants this year and hopes to see the tradition continue to grow. “It was nice to see so many younger students competing—and in a few cases actually winning,” she said. “There was even a complete beginner in 9th grade who was brave enough to compete. The spirit of the Fleming Cup is more about being together as a community than about winning, so I hope more and more people—both students and faculty members—participate each year.”

A quick look at the Engelberg trip (and see a photo gallery here)