In 1977, Furano held its first FIS World Cup Ski Competition.
The competitors, including greats such as Gustav Thöni, were all cheerful and friendly, light-heartedly chatting with us at the lifts.

One of my memories from back then was a victory celebration at the Shirakaba Hut. We had a boisterous time drinking with the competitors – even one who had been injured and hobbled in on crutches. After the celebration, we skied down together, still merry on liquor. If memory serves, that must have been the 1979 finals.

The tournament directors, together with some 200 course staff, spent every night at the Royal Lodge (then at the base of the Kitanomine ski hill), and were off to maintain the courses first thing in the morning.

Furano’s snow is different from Europe, in fact so light and dry that it was a struggle to compress. In particular, it took a long time to compress snow on the Giant Course, which held two events, slalom and giant slalom. In those days, everything was still done by hand, and we would normally wear out several shovels making each course.
The Self-Defence Force also assisted in the efforts, and their dedication was most impressive. They would head out in the morning before sunrise and work in the dark. Even if a blizzard shut down the lifts, they would hike up the mountain and get to work.