Snow Australia Annual General Meeting
Published Fri 20 Mar 2020
The 2018-2019 Annual General Meeting for Snow Australia was held Wednesday night, for the first time held via video conferencing to accommodate current health restrictions around travel and social distancing.
In pleasing news for the future of the sport, it was unanimously voted on for the organisation name change from Ski & Snowboard Australia to Snow Australia, with the new organisational constitution also voted in.
Snow Australia President Dean Gosper took the opportunity to acknowledge the uncertain times currently facing the world but reinforced Snow Australia’s resolve to navigate through the difficult times.
“The world, let alone sport, faces a foggy future. Snow Australia's core priorities as part of the response the world is facing right now is on employee and athlete welfare, communication for our stakeholders as well as organisational sustainability,” said Gosper.
“I wish all the Snow Australia community the strength and wisdom to navigate these uncertain times. We are also sensitive to the evolving implications for our valued Resort partners and are committed to collaborations which moderate the impact,” he said.
Now operating as a unified national sporting organisation, Gosper said Snow Australia is in the best position to manage the uncertain times facing sports, athletes and the broader community.
“The structural changes, operational plans and continued athlete success in the last 12 months have all combined to put Snow Australia in a solid position to endure the social and commercial disruption associated with Covid-19.
“As outlined in the annual report, unification has enhanced the sport’s financial strength, consolidated our decision making and broadened our communication channels which now carry unified and unambiguous messages.
“I want to complement our management team on setting up these solid foundations which can now be relied upon in the short term and then taken advantage of for the benefit of the longer-term future of our sport,” he said.
The 2018-2019 year delivered another strong 12 months for the organisation across athlete performances as well as the delivery of organisational initiatives.
“It is essential to acknowledge the valuable contributions of our many athletes, their coaches, support staff and families. Contributions not only during the past year but also in their thoughtful responses to a rapidly changing event landscape in recent months.
“There are many milestones achieved, outlined in detail within the annual report,” he said
Gosper highlighted at the AGM some of the standout achievements for the sport and athletes in the last 12 months including:
- Scotty James’ clean sweep of the Snowboard Halfpipe World Cup season and his third World Championship gold medal.
- Para Alpine skier Melisa Perrine and guide Bobbi Kelli with 16 World Cup and World Championship medals.
- NSW Government commitment to a major sport infrastructure initiative in Jindabyne which will incorporate a National Snowsports Training Centre.
- The inaugural Snow Australia Community Awards in Canberra reflecting the organisation’s heightened sense of community and directly attributable to unification.
“I want to acknowledge the continued support of the sport’s funding partners, Sport Australia and the Australian Olympic Committee. I would also like to thank my fellow Board Members, our Committees and the management team which have positioned themselves as the sport’s experts to support athletes and develop champions,” said Gosper.