August 2021

Dear Alpine Members (past and present),

With all our clubs and resorts in lockdown it’s definitely a testing time for our athletes and families. I hope you are all finding ways to stay motivated and positive during this period and continue to be creative in developing yourselves as athletes. The clubs and Snow Australia remain committed to utilize every opportunity to return to snow and resume training as soon as possible. 

The events in Mt. Buller remain scheduled, and the club and resort are committed, when possible, to allow athletes to come together for a fun competition to close out the season. Unfortunately given the recent extension on the lockdown for regional NSW the events scheduled at Thredbo are cancelled.

Remember ski racing is a long journey with many hurdles along they way and perseverance is key to reaching your goals. Stay positive and fingers crossed we can enjoy some sunny September turns across all of the resorts.

I would also like to take a moment to personally thank Rebecca Clark for all her work behind the scenes to help Alpine get to where it is today. Her tireless work and support to both Mick Branch and myself over the years is irreplaceable and we will miss her on our team. I wish Bec all the best in the future and look forward to catching up with her for a drink to say thank you when we are all out of lockdown.

Cheers,

Shawn

Shawn Fleming
Alpine Director

Snow Australia National Development Pathway Coordinator Rebecca Clark has announced that she will be leaving Snow Australia to take up a role in the Coaching and Officiating area with Sport Australia.

“On behalf of Snow Australia, I wish Bec nothing but the absolute best as she starts this new chapter in her career,” said Snow Australia CEO Michael Kennedy. “Bec has been part of the fabric of snowsports administration for over 14 years and I’d like to thank her for her dedication and invaluable contribution to our sport.”

Clark started working in snowsports as NSW Interschools Operations Manager in 2007, also collaborating with Snowsports ACT before serving as NSW Snowsports Executive Officer from 2010 through until the unification process in 2017. 

The current season has provided many challenges for the Australian Snow Industry and the snowsports community alike.

With the announcement that the current lockdown for regional NSW is to be extended until at least Friday 10th September, it is clear that it is no longer possible to provide certainty to the community regarding the conduct of the NSW Alpine Children's Carnival and FIS Alpine races scheduled for early September at Thredbo. Accordingly, it is with significant disappointment that we confirm that these events will not proceed this season.

We thank Thredbo resort and the Thredbo Ski Racing Club for their ongoing support of Snow Australia events and in particular our community of alpine skiers.

A year on since its release, the National Alpine Plan (2020-2026) has already delivered positive results on several of its priorities and continues to provide a solid foundation to support the development of alpine and ski cross world-class athletes. 

The National Alpine Plan was implemented in August 2020 by the National Alpine Committee (NAC), with the objective to facilitate a systemic approach to alpine and ski cross development, build a collaborative platform for all stakeholders and identify strengths and opportunities within the pathway.

Over the last 12 months, a number of initiatives have been rolled out to assist clubs and development programs, with dedicated National Working Groups established to focus on four key aspects of the plan - Capability, Communication, Capacity and Community.

Winter Olympian Harry Laidlaw has returned to snow last week, after a long period of rehabilitation to recover from an ACL injury sustained in the 2020 northern winter.

Laidlaw suffered a left ACL tear in November last year, undergoing surgery in Innsbruck later that month.

The 25-year-old Melburnian has since returned to Australia, where he has worked closely with physiotherapist Ben Bond and Snow Australia Alpine Performance Consultant Mick Branch throughout his rehabilitation.

Bond, who has been an integral part of this journey, said not only is Laidlaw’s return to snow promising ahead of the northern winter, but a reward for the hard work he has put in to get to this point.

For any Alpine and Ski Cross enquiries, please contact alpine@snow.org.au.

For general enquiries, please contact info@snow.org.au.