Cut-resistant pants at every FIS race: what changes in the 2026-27 rules
Julia Scheib of Austria in the second run of the World Cup giant slalom at Soldeu, Andorra, on 10 February 2024. Photo: Tournasol7 via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0
From the 2026-27 season, every racer at every FIS alpine race must wear cut-resistant pants under the race suit. Until last season the rule applied only at World Cup and Continental Cup level. The new FIS equipment specifications also add, for the first time, a maximum weight for ski, plate and binding, maximum ski lengths and a maximum boot height.
In short
- Cut-resistant undergarment pants are mandatory at all FIS alpine events, with at least 3 stars of protection.
- In 2025-26 they were mandatory only at race levels 0 and 1, such as the World Cup and Continental Cups.
- Airbags stay mandatory in downhill and super-G at levels 0 and 1; the Nor-Am exception is gone.
- New: a men's downhill ski with plate and binding may weigh at most 5.3 kg per ski.
- The first slaloms under the new rules are at Levi, Finland, on 14 and 15 November 2026.
What the new pants rule says
The rule is in section 3.5.3.4 of the FIS Specifications for Alpine Competition Equipment, edition 2026/2027. FIS signed the first version on 6 July 2026 and the current one on 8 October 2026. "The use of cut-resistant undergarment pants is mandatory for all FIS Alpine Skiing events," it says.
The pants must give at least 3-star protection under the FIS-DITF test standard. That protection must cover the leg everywhere between the iliac crest, the top of the hip bone, and the top of the ski boot. Cut-resistant shirts or full-body suits stay strongly recommended, not mandatory.
| FIS star level | Cutting force the fabric resists |
|---|---|
| 1 star | 100 N |
| 2 stars | 200 N |
| 3 stars (minimum for the pants) | 300 N |
| 4 stars | 400 N |
| 5 stars | 500 N |
The fabric must reach its level in 4 of 5 tests, in three directions of the textile. The weakest direction sets the star level. Approved pants carry a 30 × 50 mm label on the back of the lower left leg, above the boot.
Who it affects
Australia's national federation Snow Australia told its racers in August that the old wording, "strongly recommended", was changed to mandatory "for all FIS events starting this season". The Austrian masters association VSKI wrote on 9 September that the pants are now also required in the FIS Masters Cup.
The Italian ski site I Love Ski reported on 29 September that FIS had made the pants compulsory in level 0 and 1 races during 2025-26, and recommended them elsewhere. The American outlet Ski Racing Media lists FIS races, Nor-Am and Europa Cup races, university races and Masters races. Its article is partner content by the founder of a company that sells such pants.
The rule follows serious cuts from ski edges. Aleksander Aamodt Kilde of Norway cut his leg deeply in the World Cup downhill at Wengen on 13 January 2024, I Love Ski recalled.
Airbags: fewer exceptions
Airbags stay mandatory in downhill and super-G at race levels 0 and 1, in races and in official training. The 2025-26 text excepted the Nor-Am Cup, the Far East Cup and the Junior World Championships. The 2026-27 text has no exceptions, and racers without an activated airbag can now also be disqualified.
"Simply wearing the protector without activating its electronic system does not satisfy the rule," Ski Racing Media wrote on 9 October about the Nor-Am races. The first Nor-Am downhill training at Copper Mountain, Colorado, is on 7 December, according to that report.
New limits on weight, length and boots
The 2026-27 specifications add three new kinds of limits. Before, FIS set only minimum ski lengths, and there was no weight limit. The weights below are per assembled ski: ski, plate and binding together.
| Discipline | Max length women / men | Min length women / men | Max weight women / men |
|---|---|---|---|
| Downhill | 218 / 223 cm | 210 / 218 cm | 5.2 / 5.3 kg |
| Super-G | 215 / 218 cm | 205 / 210 cm | 5.0 / 5.1 kg |
| Giant slalom | 192 / 200 cm | 188 / 193 cm | 4.9 / 5.1 kg |
| Slalom | no maximum | 155 / 165 cm | 4.5 / 4.6 kg |
The October edition allows a weight tolerance of 300 g in downhill and super-G for the 2026-27 season. The normal tolerance is 50 g. The new boot rule caps the overall boot height by sole length, from 365 mm for a 260–269 mm sole to 434 mm for a 330–339 mm sole.
The weight limit is not popular with everyone. "I'm not convinced that this regulation will have a positive impact on safety in our sport," Rossignol racing director Stéphane Mougin told the Swiss paper Blick, as blue News reported on 9 October.
The next races under the new rules
| Date | Race |
|---|---|
| Saturday 14 November 2026 | Levi, women's slalom |
| Sunday 15 November 2026 | Levi, men's slalom |
| Saturday 28 November 2026 | Copper Mountain, men's super-G, first speed race of the season |
| Friday 11 December 2026 | Beaver Creek, women's downhill, first women's speed race |
What the FIS rules mean for your race skis
The FIS lengths and radii decide which race skis a club or FIS racer can use. On the makers' figures, the Völkl Racetiger GS R WC FIS comes in 188 and 193 cm with a 30 m radius, the FIS minimums for women and men. The Rossignol Hero FIS SL comes in 157 and 165 cm.
Check the weight of your ski, plate and binding together if you race at FIS level. For skis outside racing, compare models on the makers' figures, or let Pick-a-Ski rank the catalog for your level and terrain.
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