Faster, greener skis: the race to develop PFAS-free waxes
With the Winter Olympics just days away and the world’s best athletes preparing to fight for medals, attention turns to a small but decisive factor in performance: ski and snowboard waxes. Two projects from the Institute of Mechanical Engineering and Materials Technology (MEMTi), working with KV+ Sagl, ZHAW and Swiss-Ski, are racing to develop alternatives to fluorinated waxes—banned over environmental and health concerns but still considered the gold standard for speed.