The 2022 Varsity ski trip saw two reported incidents of spiking at its ‘Final Night Party’, held at a sports hall in Val Thorens, with only Oxbridge students in attendance.

The event organiser, NUCO, told Varsity that two females were confirmed to have been spiked by the medical team. The women identified the man to members of staff from a picture, and the incident was reported to the French police by the NUCO welfare team.

The police arrived at the end of the scheduled night, with the party ending at 00:30am on 9/12/2022, when, according to NUCO, “attendees were asked to leave in single file allowing the police to more easily identify those exiting the venue.”

The man was taken to the police station and released without charge. The two women were given guidance as to how to take the matter further if they wished, but NUCO has received no further correspondence from those affected.

The incident comes one year after over five incidents of spiking were recorded at a single Varsity and NUCO run event held at Le Malaysia nightclub in Val Thorens. The 2021 Varsity Co-President stated that this was the first ever instance of spiking that had been reported on a Varsity trip. However, despite a change in venue, this trend of spiking has continued in 2022.

Further safety issues arising from NUCO’s attempt to increase security at the Final Night Party have been raised by students. In an email sent before the party, NUCO informed attendees that the cloak room, that had been available to students on the Opening Night Party (04/12/2022), was closed “to give us more space for entry and searching.” In the same email, NUCO advised students to “hold or wear your jacket around your waist in the venue.” Students instead left their coats in a quieter area upstairs.

When the party ended hundreds of students were crammed into a tight hallway leading to the stairwell as they rushed to get their coats. One student likened the overcrowding to a “mosh pit” and told Varsity that “if someone had fainted, they would have been trampled on”.

Another student reported that they “were crushed towards one door” as they tried to exit the venue, that the French police “wouldn’t tell us what was going on”, and that implemented measures “made it more difficult to get out”.

When asked for comment NUCO replied: “The NUCO Travel team expresses our empathy to those affected and assures our passengers (present and future) that as a tour operator, we do our utmost to safeguard our guests’ welfare and escalate to the relevant authorities where suitable. Our policies are regularly reviewed to ensure we improve where possible”.