“César Ritz” Colleges Switzerland continued its Olympic tradition by serving the athletes at the European Olympic Youth Festival from 22-29 January 2005. With more than 1,200 participants, the Festival put our students' hospitality and management skills to the test.

Young athletes aged 15-18 years, from more than 40 countries competed in eight winter sports during the festival. The competitions took place in the Monthey and Portes-du-Soleil region but the accommodation was in Champéry. A team of 80 “César Ritz” Colleges’ students were in charge of serving the participants their meals, totaling more than 30,000 over the course of the week. Another 40 students served at four official receptions of 300-500 guests each.

Since the Le Bouveret campus opened in 1986, “César Ritz” Colleges Switzerland has been dedicated to helping to promote tourism in the region. With the help of about 80 guides from the Swiss Tourism School, this event proved an excellent opportunity for the athletes to discover Switzerland. It was also an excellent source of experience for the “César Ritz” students. The festival was integrated into the Events Management course and allowed the students to apply their knowledge to organising and running an actual event.