The Sapporo Snow Festival, is one of Japan's largest winter events, and attracts over two million visitors from Japan and abroad every year to the Sapporo Snow Festival at the beginning of February in the peak of the winter snow/ski season.
Each year hundreds of snow / ice sculptors are created and displayed over the seven days of the Festival with snow and ice sculptures lining Odori Park, Community Dome Tsudome, and along the main street in Susukino. Turning Sapporo into a winter wonderland of white snow and ice.
2020 The 71st Sapporo Snow Festival (SSF) and 47th The International Snow Sculpture Contest (ISSC) is located in the centre of Sapporo:
Odori Site (Snow Sculpture)
Susukino Site (Ice Sculpture)
Date: Feb. 4 (Mon.) - Feb.11 (Mon.) 2020
The Australian Snow Sculpture Team (ASST)
will start sculpting from Feb 2nd, two days before
the official opening ceremony.
For more information on official Sapporo Snow Festival website
History: Sapporo Snow Festival
The first Sapporo Snow Festival was held in Odori Park in 1950, with only six snow statues made by local high school students. The festival attracted about fifty thousand people and soon became a major winter event of Sapporo.
In 1955, the Self Defense Force joined in to make a massive snow sculpture and in 1959, twenty five hundred people participated in making snow sculptures and the nationwide media reported the Snow Festival for the first time.
History: International Snow Sculpture Contest
In 1974, the International Snow Sculpture Contest began as a part of the 25th Snow Festival giving the festival more an international flavor and promoting international friendship among nations.
There were 6 teams participated for the 1st contest and grew to 20 teams from various regions of the world. Australian participated from 1975 and has made 36th appearance creating a range Snow Sculpture designs and cultural exchange between Japan and Australia.
Australian participation history
Modern Day: International Snow Sculpture Contest
Up to 10-12 teams, from various regions of the world compete each year to carve a design out of a 3m high x 3m wide and 3m deep block of compressed snow in challenge winter conditions, below -5 to -20 degrees.
The contest has created a remarkable international atmosphere for the participants and the public that enjoy a positive cultural exchange and having developed new friendships in japan and from around the world.
Meet the 2020 Australian Snow Sculpture Team
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