NSW XC legends presented with Snow Australia Medal at Perisher

Cross-country skiing Olympians Bruce Haslingden, David Hislop and Anthony Evans were presented with their Snow Australia Medal at the Perisher Cross Country Centre on Thursday, as part of the NSW XC Ski Week activities.

It was a fitting venue to present the Snow Australia medals to the three recipients, who have all started their competitive skiing careers at Perisher and have many memories of competing on the Snowy Mountains trails. The occasion also gave the NSW Cross-country skiing community an opportunity to celebrate with the medalists.  

The Snow Australia Medal recognises the achievements and careers of those past and retiring athletes who represented Australia at the highest level of snow sport competition.

Finn Marsland, Snow Australia Cross Country Skiing Program Director, was on hand to present the Medals.

Bruce Haslingden’s daughter, Sally Madigan, received his award on behalf of the family. Bruce is considered by many the pioneer of Cross-Country skiing in Australia and the man who established the sport in the Snowy Mountains of NSW. He and his teammate Cedric Sloan were Australia's first Cross-Country skiers ever selected for the Olympics, making the Australian team in our country’s first appearance in snow sports at the Oslo 1952 Winter Games. Remembered by many for his kindness and understanding, Bruce was the kind of man who would be cheering all racers through the finish, always encouraging and pushing them on harder. 

David Hislop is a two-time Olympian in cross-country skiing, having participated in the Sarajevo 1984 and Calgary 1988 Winter Olympics. 

After his first Olympic appearance Hislop began racing in Cross-country ski marathons and in 1985 he set the record for the fastest Cross-country time from Perisher to Kiandra, skiing solo over some of Australia’s wildest terrain and covering the 80km in 6 hours and 18 minutes. David is still the only Australian to complete the 90km Vasaloppet in under 4 hours. He also served on several committees, including as Chair of the Australian Ski Federation Cross-Country Committee between 1990-1992 and Chair of NSW Cross-Country Committee between 2014-2015. 

Along with receiving his Medal, David Hislop also competed in the NSW XC Ski Week and participated in the Sundeck Handicap event which was held on the same day. All proceeds from the race, now in its 16th year,  go to the “XC Towards 2022” Development Fund for the Australian Cross Country Ski Team. 

 
Anthony Evans became the first Australian cross-country skier to compete in three Olympic Games, being the Albertville 1992, Lillehammer 1994 and Nagano 1998 Winter Games. After retiring from competition, Anthony has stayed involved in the sport, supporting his daughter Zana - already a Youth Olympian at Lausanne 2020 - and serving as a member of the Snow Australia Cross Country Committee.

Unfortunately the current travel restrictions associated to the COVID-19 outbreaks prevented other cross-country skiing legends from attending, with Snow Australia hoping to present Chris Allan, Colleen Bolton and Ross Martin’s family with the Snow Australia Medal at the earliest opportunity.