Top university students strip down on French Piste....

Oxbridge students compete in debauched challenge on ski slopes of France to win free holiday

By DAILY MAIL REPORTER
Last updated at 5:38 PM on 23rd January 2011

When thousands of students hit the ski slopes of a French resort to let their hair down, a little bad behaviour was probably to be expected.

But what unfolded when the potential future Cabinet ministers and opinion-formers of Oxford and Cambridge gathered for the £300-a-head trip shocked even experienced observers of the antics of Britons abroad.

Some female students stripped naked in front of hundreds of baying revellers, while teams from both universities competed to fulfil the most depraved challenges as they vied to win a five-star skiing holiday worth £2,000.

Chilly: Female students stripped down to their bras in a French ski resort as teams from Oxford and Cambridge universities competed in depraved challenges in a bid to win a five-star holiday worth £2,000

They also posted photographs of themselves with chocolate and pasta sauce smeared on their bare skin and simulating sex acts on one another.

Yesterday, however, as the evidence of their riotous, drink-fuelled behaviour came to light, the luxury travel company which had put up the prize cuts its links with the annual Varsity ski trip in protest at the levels of debauchery.

The contest, dubbed the ‘Valley Rally’, marked the final day of the week’s holiday to the plush French resort Val Thorens which up to 2,500 students paid at least £300 each to attend.

Splash: Barely-clothed female students are splattered with yoghurt. Other challenges included smashing an egg 'in the most creative manner possible' before eating it

Embarrassment: Scott Dunn was so unhappy with the students' antics, it has refused to sponsor further trips

Oxbridge students have been organising the annual ski-trip since 1922, but witnesses said last month’s debauchery plumbed new depths.

Vying for a free five-star Austrian skiing holiday worth £2,000 organised by travel firm Scott Dunn, teams from Oxford and Cambridge performed tasks including smashing an egg ‘in the most creative manner possible’ before eating it. 

Students from St Anne’s College, Oxford - whose alumni include Edwina Currie, Libby Purves and Mary Archer - were named the winners after eggs were placed between the buttocks of one member while another smashed it with a wine bottle.

In another round, students were given the task of eating as much snow as they could from a bucket in just one minute.

But a group of Cambridge students asked to be allowed to urinate in the snow before consuming it in order to score ‘extra points.’

Debauched: Oxbridge students have been organising the trip since 1922, but witnesses said last month's debauchery plumbed new depths

Afterwards a disappointed member of the group said: ‘It was disappointing to make such an effort early on and then not to win. It makes it feel like it was all a bit pointless.’

The runners up were ordered to drink each other’s urine as a forfeit.

Meanwhile participants stripped naked despite the cold and posed for erotic pictures on the slopes, covered in pasta sauce and melted chocolate.

One of those on the winning team, Sophie Hibbin, admitted she had behaved outrageously to try and secure the free trip. 

‘I sold my dignity for a free holiday,’ she said.

Sunny Gohel, a second year student studying experimental psychology, added: ‘I think I may have got hypothermia but it was definitely worth it.’ 

But one Varsity trip organiser described how he believed he had witnessed students ‘losing their souls’ while competing.

And a rep from tour company Off the Piste said she was surprised at the willingness of participants to take their clothes off, especially given the freezing conditions and the presence of photographers.

A large number of students had originally signed up for the Valley Rally, but many dropped out when the nature of the competition became clear.

A spokesman for Scott Dunn said the company chose to sponsor the event because they saw Oxbridge students as a ‘great audience for a high end operator like themselves.’

But the travel company had been unaware of the true nature of the contest and were under the impression that they were simply sponsoring a ‘fun ski race’.

After learning of the bad behaviour, it released a statement saying it ‘in no way endorsed’ their antics, adding: ‘Scott Dunn will be honouring the prize as per our agreement but will have no future involvement in the Varsity Trip and Valley Rally.’

Spokesmen for St Anne’s College and Cambridge University refused to comment on the trip as it was organised by students themselves.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1349809/Oxbridge-students-compete-debauched-challenge-ski-slopes-win-free-holiday.html#ixzz1Bt5Zpqtl