Alpine skier Faiz Basha stays cool ahead of Olympic debut
By Nicole Chia for the SNOC
Skis, poles, race suit, ski boots, helmet and goggles – a skier decked out in full gear in the heart of tropical Singapore might seem a perplexing sight to passers-by in the vicinity. But alpine skier Faiz Basha’s racing get-up instead draws more questions when he is on the slopes, because of one feature: the Singapore flag displayed on his outfit.
The 23-year-old was recently the subject of a photo shoot in which he wore his full competition suit and boots in Singapore’s Central Business District. “I had the skis and ski boots on, so I guess people kind of understood what it was. (There were) not so much questions; I get more questions when I’m on the slopes wearing the Singapore flag,” he said. “A lot of people don’t really know what Singapore is, so I get a lot of confusion … they’re like, ‘Oh, Singapore – what is it? And I’ll say, ‘It’s a city-state in the middle of Southeast Asia.’”
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The Singapore flag could well be a topic of conversation again this week at the Stelvio Ski Centre, when Faiz takes to the slopes as the country’s first alpine skier at the Olympic Winter Games. He is only the second Singaporean Winter Olympian, after short-track speed skater Cheyenne Goh who competed in the 2018 edition.
At the Milano-Cortina 2026 Olympic Winter Games, Faiz will compete in the giant slalom and slalom events on 14 Feb and 16 Feb respectively. He is unfazed as he readies himself for an appearance on sport’s grandest stage, with this calm stemming from focusing on specific aspects of his training. These include sport-specific exercises and conditioning drills that have translated to improved balance and power endurance on the slopes.
Working with a sport psychologist has helped with steadying his mind during competitions. He also believes he is better equipped to handle the nerves of competing in bigger events, having raced in the Asian Winter Games, FIS Alpine World Ski Championships and World University Games during the 2025 season.
“I’m just getting my routine and skiing set-up really perfected, because in skiing it’s not just about your body. It’s also about how your body interacts with the equipment,” explained Faiz, rattling off a series of considerations: how the skis are sharpened, which part of the skis are sharpened, the type, shape and stiffness of skis used, the angle of the ski boots.
“All of these things, I’ve been slowly changing here and there. Around December, everything started to really come together and get really good. I stopped facing issues, so now all of these different pillars that are essential to being a good skier are all starting to come together, which I’m quite happy about,” added Faiz, who learnt to ski at age three in Switzerland where his family had relocated due to his father’s work posting.
“Honestly, it’s not freaking me out too much. I’m quite prepared. It’s been a long time that I’ve known I have the capabilities to qualify. I’ve been preparing for this for many, many years.”
His journey to the Olympics has seen him navigate challenges such as recovering from a torn intestine after a serious accident during a race at age 14, and keeping up with training while balancing National Service commitments.
His mother Sharifah Albar recalled conversations she had with her son over video call as he ruminated on ways to adapt his training while serving NS. One of these ideas entailed skating on land to simulate the turns and techniques required in a slalom race, and Faiz had requested roller skates as a birthday gift so that he could continue training in Singapore.
“NS turned him from an ikan bilis to a shark,” said Sharifah, who is in her early 50s. “He started going to the gym more to build muscle and he bulked up, so even if he falls, he’s strong enough to pick himself up.
“He has built himself up not just in muscle, but also psychologically to this level. You can see that he really wants it, there’s real passion and determination … I cannot be more proud that he is where he is right now.”
Sharifah first taught Faiz how to ski, and his enthusiasm and joy on the slopes had always been evident.
“The nicest thing about this whole starting point was that he wasn’t crying even when he fell. He was just laughing all the way, smiling and giggling and he kept trying,” she said. “He would say, ‘Oh, there goes my leg, I’m going to fall again.’ And I would tell him, ‘It’s ok, I’ll hold your hand’. That was the moment I realised this dude really wants to ski.”
Memories of these early days were on Faiz’s mind as he marched out carrying the Singapore flag during the Opening Ceremony at the Milano San Siro Olympic Stadium on Feb 6.
“I was thinking about my mum in the crowd and remembering the first time she taught me to ski and the whole journey shared figuring out the sport together,” he said.
Now, Faiz has figured out his sport well enough that he can tune his own skis and, with the knowledge acquired from being a mechanical engineering student at Strathclyde University, even rebuild and customise his skis with his own components.
He is also familiar with the unpredictable nature of alpine skiing. Athletes have to contend with numerous variable conditions including snow, wind, light, and holes and grooves on the race course, all of which can affect each skier’s race.
Explaining that he has avoided setting ranking-based targets for the Olympics, he said: “In skiing we have this thing called DNF – Did Not Finish – and that is a very normal thing to happen. Even the world champion who is at the Olympics has maybe a 40 per cent chance of having a DNF. It happens to everybody and it’s part of the sport, but it’s about how you try and how you perform.
“For me whether I finish the course or not, I want to be able to ski as I’ve been skiing in training. I don’t want to be nervous, holding myself back because it’s such a big event. It’s a big event and that’s why if I can ski at a 100 per cent, that’s all I want for myself.”
Faiz, who turns 24 at the end of the month, hopes his Olympic outing reminds fellow Singaporeans that anything is possible.
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“Every time I think back to when I was training during NS on roller skates outside the National Stadium, I remember people giving me weird looks, like ‘What the hell is this guy doing skating left and right with some ski poles and cones?’ They looked kind of confused, and it doesn’t look very cool; it’s just something that was very technical that I was working on,” he said.
“That’s where I came from and now I’m here. I’m carrying the flag of the place where I was training, doing these stupid things that people wouldn’t think were actually good for skiing but it was. Anything is possible, don’t judge me just because I’m from here. I can still do it.”
