Australia at the Winter Olympics - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Australia first competed in the Winter Olympic Games

Winter Olympic Games

The Winter Olympic Games is a sporting event, which occurs every four years. The first celebration of the Winter Olympics was held in Chamonix, France, in 1924. The original sports were alpine and cross-country skiing, figure skating, ice hockey, Nordic combined, ski jumping and speed skating...

in 1936

1936 Winter Olympics

The 1936 Winter Olympics, officially known as the IV Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated in 1936 in the market town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen in Bavaria, Germany. Germany also hosted the Summer Olympics the same year in Berlin...

in Garmisch-Partenkirchen

Garmisch-Partenkirchen

Garmisch-Partenkirchen is a mountain resort town in Bavaria, southern Germany. It is the administrative centre of the district of Garmisch-Partenkirchen, in the Oberbayern region, and the district is on the border with Austria...

, and has participated in every games since, with the exception of the 1948 Games

1948 Winter Olympics

The 1948 Winter Olympics, officially known as the V Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event celebrated in 1948 in St. Moritz, Switzerland. The Games were the first to be celebrated after World War II; it had been twelve years since the last Winter Games in 1936...

in St. Moritz

St. Moritz

St. Moritz is a resort town in the Engadine valley in Switzerland. It is a municipality in the district of Maloja in the Swiss canton of Graubünden...

.

In the early years, Australia's athletes did poorly; only two athletes placed in the top half of their events before 1976, while the vast majority placed in the bottom quarter, including some who finished last. This lack of success was attributed to the Australian culture, climate and lack of snow, as well as the lack of support for the athletes—sports administrators regarded investment in winter sports as futile.

After the appointment of Geoff Henke

Geoff Henke

Geoff Henke is a former Australian ice hockey player and Australian Olympic Committee official. He was the chef de mission of the Australian Winter Olympic delegations from 1976 until 1994, and is credited with ending the neglect of winter sports in Australia....

—who had been unable to compete in 1956 after the administrators neglected to endorse his ice hockey team's application—as team manager in 1976, the results slowly began to improve, and by the 1990s, some Australians were regarded as medal prospects. The upturn in performance was accompanied by increased government funding for winter sports, the creation of the Olympic Winter Institute of Australia

Olympic Winter Institute of Australia

The Olympic Winter Institute of Australia is a federal government-funded elite sports training institution of Australia for the purpose of training athletes and coaches in sports involved in the Winter Olympics....

and the purchase of an alpine training base in Austria

Austria

Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...

.

Australia won its first medal, a bronze, in 1994 in the men's 5,000 metres short track relay speed skating event. Zali Steggall

Zali Steggall

Zali Steggall is Australia's most internationally successful alpine skier, winning a bronze medal in slalom at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, and a World Championship gold medal in 1999. Steggall's long Olympic career extended from Albertville in 1992 to Salt Lake City in 2002...

gained Australia's first individual medal in 1998, when she won bronze in the slalom event. In 2002, Steven Bradbury

Steven Bradbury

Steven John Bradbury OAM is a former Australian short track speed skater and four-time Olympian, who won the 1,000 m event at the 2002 Winter Olympics after all of his opponents were involved in a last corner pile-up...

won the 1,000 metres short track speed skating and Alisa Camplin

Alisa Camplin

Alisa Camplin OAM is an Australian aerial skier who won gold at the 2002 Winter Olympics, the second ever winter olympic gold medal for Australia. At the 2006 Winter Olympics, Camplin finished third, a bronze medal...

won the aerials event, making Australia the only southern hemisphere country to have won a gold medal at a Winter Olympics.

Australia sent 40 competitors to compete in 10 sports at the 2006 Games

2006 Winter Olympics

The 2006 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XX Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated in Turin, Italy from February 10, 2006, through February 26, 2006. This marked the second time Italy hosted the Olympic Winter Games, the first being the VII Olympic Winter...

in Turin

Turin

Turin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...

, a national-record number of athletes and events. Their goal of winning a medal was achieved when Dale Begg-Smith

Dale Begg-Smith

Dale Begg-Smith is an Australian-Canadian freestyle skier. Begg-Smith won the gold medal for Australia, his adopted country, in the men's moguls event at the 2006 Winter Olympics and silver at the 2010 Winter Olympics...

won the gold in men's freestyle moguls skiing. Camplin claimed her second medal, a bronze in the aerials event. At the 2010 Games

2010 Winter Olympics

The 2010 Winter Olympics, officially the XXI Olympic Winter Games or the 21st Winter Olympics, were a major international multi-sport event held from February 12–28, 2010, in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, with some events held in the suburbs of Richmond, West Vancouver and the University...

in Vancouver

Vancouver

Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...

, Begg-Smith won a silver in the moguls, while Torah Bright

Torah Bright

Torah Jane Bright is an Australian snowboarder. She turned pro at age 14 and finished fifth in snowboarding at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Torino, Italy. She lives and trains in the area of Salt Lake City, Utah, USA...

and Lydia Lassila won the women's hal-pipe snowboarding and aerial freestyle skiing respectively. The 2010 Games were Australia's most successful Winter Olympics, with two gold and one silver.

Early struggles

Winter sports have traditionally been second to summer pursuits in Australian sporting culture, but interest and support in the former has grown. The decision-making bodies of the Australian Olympic Federation (AOF) allowed winter sports to be represented, but their representatives were usually overruled by their summer counterparts.

The first Winter Olympics took place in 1924. Australia first competed at the Winter Olympics in 1936, when its sole representative, Kenneth Kennedy, participated in speed skating. Kennedy came 33rd in both the 1500 m and 5000 m, near the bottom of the standings. He was entirely on his own; no Australian support staff were in attendance, even though the AOF officially sanctioned Kennedy's entry.

The Olympics were then halted due to the outbreak of World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

. Australia did not send a team to the 1948 Winter Olympics, but has competed at every Winter Olympics since, sending nine athletes to the 1952 Olympics. There were five skiers, two cross-country and three downhill—who either failed to finish or whose results were unknown— three figure skaters and one speed skater. Adrian Swan

Adrian Swan

Adrian Swan is an Australian figure skater. He represented Australia at the 1952 Winter Olympics, where he placed 10th. He was the first men's singles skater to represent Australia at the Olympics. In 1951, he also competed at the British Figure Skating Championships...

and Nancy Burley

Nancy Burley

Nancy Burley is an Australian figure skater. She represented Australia at the 1952 Winter Olympics, where she placed 14th. She and Gweneth Molony were the first ladies singles skaters to represent Australia at the Olympics.Burley is the mother of figure skaters Sharon Burley and Robyn...

, who finished 10th and 14th in figure skating, were the only two Australia competitors to place in the top 20, although neither placed in the top half of the field. Burley and fellow figure skater Gweneth Molony

Gweneth Molony

Gweneth Molony is an Australian figure skater. She is the 1949-1951 Australian national champion. She represented Australia at the 1952 Winter Olympics, where she placed 21st. She and Nancy Burley were the first ladies singles skaters to represent Australia at the Olympics...

were the first two women to represent Australia at the Winter Olympics.

Supervision and support for the athletes were relatively minimal in the early years. Colin Hickey

Colin Hickey

Colin Edward Hickey was an Australian speed skater. He represented Australia at the 1952, 1956 and 1960 Winter Olympics. His seventh place in the 1956 Winter Olympics was Australia's best result until 1976....

said that he never received clothing from the AOF, except for a black armband

Armband

An armband is a piece of material worn around the arm over the sleeve of other clothing if present. they may be worn for pure ornamentation to mark the wearer as belonging to group, having a certain rank or role, or being in a particular state or condition...

and tie for the 1952 Olympics to mourn the death of King George VI

George VI of the United Kingdom

George VI was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death...

. He also said that Australian officials had "no control over me ... All they'd do was tell me what times I had to do". Hickey was uncoached and had travelled to Europe at the age of 18 to support himself and race. In 1952, a support staffer was present for the first time; Robert "George" Chisholm

Robert Chisholm (sports administrator)

Robert “George” Chisholm was an Australian sports administrator. He was the manager of the Australian teams that competed at the 1952 and 1956 Winter Olympics....

was the first manager of an Australian Winter Olympic team. The lack of administrative attention was highlighted when Chisholm incorrectly declared that the campaign was Australia's first at the Winter Olympics.

At the 1956 Winter Olympics, Hickey, a "rink rat" who was overlooked for ice hockey when he was young because of his small frame, came seventh in the 500 and 1000 metres speed skating at his second Olympics. He later won a bronze medal at the world championships. Australia's nine other competitors were less successful; two male figure skaters—Allan Ganter

Allan Ganter

Allan Ganter is a former Australian figure skater who competed at the 1956 Winter Olympics. He scored 132.41 points and finished 13th out of 16 competitors in the men’s individual event.-Results:- References :...

and Charles Keeble

Charles Keeble

Charles Keeble is a former Australian figure skater who competed at the 1956 Winter Olympics. He scored 123.93 points and finished 16th out of 16 competitors in the men’s individual event.- References :...

—placed in the top 15 but in the bottom 25% in the individual event, while the pairs combination of Mervyn Bower

Mervyn Bower

Mervyn John Bower is a former Australian pair skater who competed at the 1956 and 1960 Winter Olympics in a pairing with Jacqueline Mason. In 1956 they failed to take to the ice after Bower was injured.Gordon, p. 522. In 1960, they placed 12th out of 13 duos.-Results:- References :*...

and Jacqueline Mason

Jacqueline Mason

Jacqueline "Jackie" Mason Kendall-Baker is a former Australian pair skater who competed at the 1956 and 1960 Winter Olympics in a pairing with Mervyn Bower. In 1956 they failed to take to the ice after Bower was injured.Gordon, p. 522. In 1960, they placed 12th out of 13 duos.-Results:- References...

failed to take to the ice after Bower was injured. The five downhill skiers were Australia's least successful entrants; the highest finish was 33rd and the median was 60th, and all were near the bottom of their events. Australia sent its first coach and female staffer for the 1956 campaign; C. Mason oversaw the skaters and Lillian Chisholm acted as the chaperone. The ice hockey team offered to pay their own way to compete; the only thing that they needed from the AOF was formal permission. However, the AOF never responded to their request; they were unable to attend, and criticised the AOF for their disinterest. One of the affected athletes was Geoff Henke

Geoff Henke

, later credited for ending the neglect of winter sports when he became an administrator.

Australia sent 31 athletes in 1960, its largest team before the 2006 Winter Olympics; their size was boosted by an outclassed 18-man ice hockey team, which conceded 83 goals in losing all six matches. They lost to Czechoslovakia 18–1 and the United States 12–1 in their two group matches, and were then placed into a group with Finland and Japan, the last-placed teams in the two other preliminary groups. The Australians played two matches against each of the other teams to determine the three worst teams in the nine-country contest. They lost all four matches, conceding a total of 53 goals. The heaviest margins were in the defeats to Czechoslovakia and Finland, 18–1 and 19–2 respectively. Australia scored only 10 goals in reply.

Hal Nerdal

Hal Nerdal

Hal Nerdal is a former Australian athlete who competed at the 1960 Winter Olympics. He came 31st and last in the Nordic combined event. It was the only time Australia has ever participated in the event at the Olympics.-References:...

competed in Nordic combined, the only time that Australia has participated in the event at the Olympics, and finished last. Four years after injury prevented them from competing, Bower and Mason recorded Australia's best result, placing 12th in the pairs figure skating, although they were still second to last. Hickey and two male figure skaters—who were close to last— were the only Australians to place in the top 20, while Christine Davy

Christine Davy

Christine Davy is a former Australian alpine skier who competed at the 1956 and 1960 Winter Olympics. In 1956, she came 39th, 33rd and 37th in the downhill, giant slalom and slalom respectively, out of 39, 33 and 37 entrants. In 1960, she came 27th, 32nd and 29th in the same three events, out of...

became the first Australian to break into the top 30 in a skiing event, although she too was in the bottom 20% of the competition. The athletes were accompanied by seven staff members, the largest Australian support contingent until 1988. Chisholm mistakenly noted in his official report that it was Australia's second participation, forgetting the delegations sent in 1936, 1952 and 1956.

With the ice hockey team in mind, there was debate about the trade-off between selection standards and participation after the 1960 Winter Olympics. At a 1963 meeting, Kenneth Kennedy complained that the ice hockey team was not given overseas trips to compete because they were not world class, but could never become competitive unless they had experience in international matches. Edgar Tanner said "I ask the winter sports whether they really believe they are in world class, or world ranking, in the field of sport and whether they can do Australia credit, or just be there." Bill Young, of cycling, disagreed, saying "I thought the first spirit of the Games was to compete", but was overruled by Tanner.

In contrast to the large 1960 team, the teams in subsequent Olympics were scaled back and were the smallest since 1936. The 1964 Winter Olympics were marred by the deaths of Australian skier Ross Milne

Ross Milne

Ross Milne was an Australian Olympic downhill skier who died when he struck a tree during a practice run three days before the 1964 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck, Austria....

—who crashed during a practice run—and a British luge competitor. Milne had skidded off the course and crashed into a tree. Members of the IOC asked the AOF whether Milne was negligently sent to compete despite a lack of experience, which the AOF denied. The Australian manager John Wagner blamed the accident on a large group of skiers who had congregated lower down on the course during the practice session, forcing Milne to take evasive action. The Australian delegation felt that the training arrangements had not been enacted strictly, making the course unsafe. Australia was represented by five skiers—excluding Milne. Christine Smith

Christine Smith (skier)

Christine Idris Smith was an Australian alpine skier. She has been described as a "long-haired blonde with an 'all-Australian girl next door' image."...

placed in the top 30 in two events, but the remainder placed 40th or lower, although all were in the bottom half of the field. Milne's replacement Peter Wenzel

Peter Wenzel

Peter Wenzel is a former Australian alpine skier who competedat the 1964 Winter Olympics. He was a reserve but was called in to compete after Ross Milne was killed in a training accident soon before the games. He came 68th out of 77 competitors in the slalom and was 68th out of 80 in the giant...

placed 68th in both the downhill and giant slalom.

Motivated in part by a desire to prove that Australians could compete at the highest level, and believing that claims that his brother died due to inexperience was a smokescreen intended to cover-up the poor safety standards, Malcolm Milne

Malcolm Milne

Malcolm Milne is a former Australian Olympic skier.In 1968, at the age of 19, Malcolm competed in his first Olympics at Grenoble, France. In an era dominated by Jean-Claude Killy, Malcolm finished twenty-fourth of eighty-six starters, with a time only 5.51 seconds behind Killy...

represented Australia at the next two Winter Olympics, won a World Cup event and came third in a World Championship. In 1968, Milne finished 24th in both the downhill and slalom events, Australia's best result in a skiing event up to that point. Ross Martin

Ross Martin (skier)

Ross Martin was an Australian cross country skier who competed at the 1968 Winter Olympics. He came 60th out of 72 competitors in the 15 km event and 60th out of 63 in the 30 km event.-External links:**...

came 60th in both cross-country events, and Colin Coates

Colin Coates

Colin Victor Coates is a former ice speed skater from Australia, who represented his native country in – a record – six consecutive Winter Olympics, starting in 1968 in Grenoble, France....

came 41st and 49th in his two speed skating events. Australia had more officials present than athletes, with five competitors and three administrators. This trend continued at the 1972 Olympics in Sapporo, which were attended by five staff and four athletes. Milne rose up the rankings to finish 23rd and 24th in the downhill and slalom respectively, as did Coates, who came in the top 30 in three of his four events, including an 18th-place result in the 10,000 m event. Milne was considered a medal contender and the team manager felt that but for a near-fall, he would have placed near the medalists.

Henke era

Up to this point, Australia's performances had been poor, and winter athletes were often derided by the summer-dominated administrators. During one meeting, a cross-country representative asked for the selection of six athletes, prompting the selection committee chairman to interject. The chairman said that a seventh place would be needed, and went on to explain that a dog was required to find the athletes after they got lost in the snow. The majority of his colleagues burst into laughter.

After the 1968 Winter Olympics, at which the only Australian alpine skier was Milne, skiing delegate Peter Blaxland said that the country should not send a solitary skier for psychological reasons. The Winter Olympics team manager reported that his European counterparts were surprised by Australia's small team. The response from the board—dominated by Summer Olympics delegates—was unsympathetic, with Sir Wilfrid Kent Hughes

Wilfrid Kent Hughes

Sir Wilfrid Selwyn Kent Hughes KBE, MVO, MC was an Australian soldier, Olympian and Olympic Games organiser, author and federal and state government minister.Kent Hughes was born in Melbourne to an upper middle-class family...

expressing concern that uncompetitive athletes might be selected. The neglect of the Winter Olympics continued until Henke's appointment as team manager in 1976. Henke held the position for two decades, until Ian Chesterman

Ian Chesterman

Ian Chesterman is a member of the Australian Olympic Committee and an Australian Winter Olympic administrator.He has been the Chef de Mission at the 1998 Nagano, 2002 Salt Lake City and 2006 Torino Winter Olympics...

took over in 1998. He rose to become vice-president of the AOF, and is credited with ending the administrative neglect of winter sport. Up until Henke's appointment, Hickey and Milne were the only athletes to have placed in the top half of any event. In 1981, Henke took AOF board members into the Australian Alps for a board meeting, allowing him to exploit the environment to promote winter sport. He said that the next Olympics "was the first time the AOF ever really got behind the winter team".

Coates reached his peak at the 1976 games in Innsbruck

Innsbruck

- Main sights :- Buildings :*Golden Roof*Kaiserliche Hofburg *Hofkirche with the cenotaph of Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor*Altes Landhaus...

. He competed in five events, and apart from a 25th-place finish in the 500 m event, did no worse than 11th in the remaining four. He came sixth in the 10,000 m, eighth in the 1,500 m and tenth in the 5,000 m. It was only the second time that an Australian had placed in the top 10, and remained Australia's best result until 1994. His five skiing compatriots were less productive; they registered in 13 races between them and completed only seven due to crashes and disqualifications, with only one top 30 result.

In 1980, Australia's competing contingent rose into double figures for the first time since 1960, with 10 representatives. Jacqui Cowderoy

Jacqui Cowderoy

Jacqui Cowderoy is a former Australian alpine skier who competedat the 1980 Winter Olympics. She came 17th out of 19 competitors in the slalom and was disqualified in the giant slalom.-References:...

became the first Australian to break into the top 20 in a skiing event, placing 17th in the slalom. The brother-and-sister pairing of Peter

Peter Cain

Peter Christian Cain is an Australian pair skater who currently works as a coach. With sister Elizabeth Cain, he is the 1976 World Junior bronze medalist and a four-time Australian national champion. Their highest placement at the World Championships was 12th in 1977. They competed in the 1980...

and Elizabeth Cain

Elizabeth Cain

Elizabeth Jane "Liz" Cain is an Australian former pair skater and current figure skating coach. With brother Peter Cain, she is the 1976 World Junior bronze medalist and four time Australian national champion.Their highest placement at the World Figure Skating Championships was 12, in 1977. They...

, Australia's first representatives in figure skating in 20 years, came 11th. Coates was unable to repeat his performances of four years earlier and his 18th and 19th places were Australia's only other top 20 results.

In 1984 in Sarajevo, Steven Lee

Steven Lee

Steven Lee is an Australian alpine skier. He competed in the 1984, 1988 and 1992 Winter Olympics, and had a competitive career lasting just on 25 years. He is the second of only 3 Australian skiers ever to claim victory on the Alpine World Cup circuit...

and Cameron Medhurst

Cameron Medhurst

Cameron Medhurst is an Australian figure skater. He is an eight time Australian national champion. He represented Australia at the 1984 Winter Olympics, where he placed 19th; at the 1988 Winter Olympics, where he again placed 19th; and at the 1992 Winter Olympics, where he placed 16th.He works as...

placed 19th in the downhill and individual figure skating respectively. No other top 20 finishes were recorded among the 11 athletes, and the two cross-country skiers and the first Australian Olympic biathlete, Andrew Paul

Andrew Paul (biathlete)

Andrew Paul is an Australian biathlete who competed at two Winter Olympics, in 1984 and 1988. He was the first Australian biathlete to compete at the Olympics. On his debut, he came 50th and 47th out of 63 and 62 competitors respectively in the 10 km and 20 km events. In 1988, he came...

, finished no better than 47th in their eight events. Australia sent 15 athletes to the 1988 Olympics in Calgary

Calgary

Calgary is a city in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It is located in the south of the province, in an area of foothills and prairie, approximately east of the front ranges of the Canadian Rockies...

, where they competed in the bobsleigh

Bobsleigh

Bobsleigh or bobsled is a winter sport in which teams of two or four make timed runs down narrow, twisting, banked, iced tracks in a gravity-powered sled that are combined to calculate the final score....

for the first time. The two two-man bobsleigh teams came 23rd and 26th respectively, well down the field.

Although a competitor on paper in 1988, Coates was supposed to only be a coach and was forbidden to compete. The Australian Skating Union had refused to select him as they wanted to allow younger athletes an opportunity to race. However, the AOF officially listed Coates as a competitor so that he could train with the others on the ice, and because the artificially inflated athlete count would entitle the Australian team to take more support staff. However, Coates was informed that the registration was only for show and that he was not to race. However, when it was time for his event, he put on a uniform, defied team orders and skated his best time ever. Henke publicly excoriated Coates in front of the cameras, but stopped when he found out that Prime Minister

Prime Minister of Australia

The Prime Minister of the Commonwealth of Australia is the highest minister of the Crown, leader of the Cabinet and Head of Her Majesty's Australian Government, holding office on commission from the Governor-General of Australia. The office of Prime Minister is, in practice, the most powerful...

Bob Hawke

Robert James Lee "Bob" Hawke AC GCL was the 23rd Prime Minister of Australia from March 1983 to December 1991 and therefore longest serving Australian Labor Party Prime Minister....

had sent Coates a congratulatory message. However, Coates' new Australian record was only good enough for 26th place and ended his sixth and final Olympic campaign.Danny Kah

Danny Kah

Danny Kah is a former ice speed skater from Australia, who represented his native country in three consecutive Winter Olympics, starting in 1988 in Calgary, Canada....

managed two top 15 finishes each, and Medhurst was the only other Australian to place in the top 20.

The 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville

Albertville

Albertville is a commune in the Savoie department in the Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France.The town is best known for hosting the 1992 Winter Olympics.-Geography:...

, France was viewed as the potential start of a new era in Australian winter sports, with hopes that a maiden medal would result. Australia's short track relay team went into the 1992 Olympics as world champions, but crashed in the semi-finals. The Australians were in third place when Richard Nizielski

Richard Nizielski

Richard Nizielski is an Australian short track speed skater who competed in the 1992 Winter Olympics, in the 1994 Winter Olympics, and in the 1998 Winter Olympics.-Early life:...

lost his footing and knocked over team-mate John Kah

John Kah

John Kah is a former Australian short track speed skater, who represented Australia at the 1992 and 1994 Winter Olympics in the relay team....

during a changeover; they finished fourth and failed to reach the final. In the individual speed skating events, Australia scored only four top 20 finishes from 12 starts, with none higher than 12th, and only one placing in the top half. Kirstie Marshall

Kirstie Marshall

Kirstie Marshall is a notable Australian aerial skier and Victorian state politician.Marshall was an ex-gymnast who became an aerial skier at Mount Buller, Victoria. During her skiing career Marshall won over 40 World Cup medals, including 17 World Cup gold medals...

was in the process of winning the 1992 World Cup series, and was one of the favourites for the women's aerial skiing, which was a demonstration event, but she crash-landed and finished seventh. Lee managed two top 20 finishes in alpine skiing events, and finished in the top half of the competitors in four events; most of the Australians remained in the bottom half in all of their events. Despite the disappointments of the near-misses, Australia increased their investment in the Winter Olympics, purchasing a training base called Sonnpark

Sonnpark

Sonnpark is an alpine training centre and base set up in Axams, near Innsbruck, Austria. It started in 1993 as a joint venture between the Australian and Austrian Olympic Committees for both summer and winter sports. Colin Hickey said about Sonnpark "Yeah. It's great .....

in Austria

Austria

in 1993.

First medals

In 1994, the short track relay team won Australia's first Winter Olympic medal, a bronze. They qualified for the four-team final after edging out Japan and New Zealand, finishing second in their semi-final. The quartet adopted a plan of staying on their feet as the first priority, and remaining undisqualified and defeating at least one of the other three finalists. During the race, the Canadians fell and lost a significant amount of time, meaning that Australia would win a medal if they raced conservatively and avoided a crash. Late in the race, Nizielski was fighting with his American counterpart for track position to claim the silver medal, but took the safe option and yielded, mindful of the lost opportunity of the crash in Albertville. It was a successful campaign for the largest team that Australia had sent—apart from 1960. The 27 athletes recorded an unprecedented five top 10 finishes. Marshall placed first in the opening round of the aerials, but faded to sixth in the final, while Kerryn Rim

Kerryn Rim

Kerryn Rim is an Australian biathlete who competed at three Winter Olympics from 1992 to 1998. On her debut, she came 39ths and 32nd out of 68 and 66 competitors respectively in the 7.5 km and 10 km events. In 1994, she came 21st and 8th out of 69 and 68 racers in the 7.5 km and...

placed eighth in the 15 km biathlon and Steven Bradbury

Steven Bradbury

and Nizielski of the medal-winning relay team placed eighth and tenth in the 500 m and 1,000 m short track events respectively. In contrast to the previous games, the Australian short track speed skaters placed in the top half of the field in six of their eight individual starts. However, the Australians in the remaining disciplines generally finished in the bottom half of their competition.

Further medal success was anticipated at the 1998 Olympics in Nagano, which were attended by 24 Australian athletes. Zali Steggall

Zali Steggall

, who months earlier had become the first Australian woman to win a World Cup event and was ranked sixth in the world, won the country's first individual medal with a bronze in slalom skiing. Her time of 1 m 32.67 s was only 0.27 s behind the gold medallist. Marshall, the world champion in 1997 and 1999, and Jacqui Cooper

Jacqui Cooper

Jacqui Cooper is an Australian freestyle skier and motivational speaker.Cooper has been participating in aerial skiing since she was 16, and has been in the Australian team for 13 years. She has had many injuries, including a shattered knee and a broken back.She competed at the 1994 Winter...

—ranked second in the world—were expected to do well in the aerials, but both crashed and failed to make the final. Bradbury, Nizielski and Kieran Hansen

Kieran Hansen

Kieran Hansen is an Australian short track speed skater who competed in the 1992 Winter Olympics, in the 1994 Winter Olympics, and in the 1998 Winter Olympics....

, three of the quartet that won Australia's maiden medal in 1994, returned but finished last, in eighth place.

Golden breakthrough

The improved results of the 1990s prompted higher expectations from the Australian Winter Olympic hierarchy. At the start of the 2002 Olympics, the Australian chef de mission Ian Chesterman

Ian Chesterman

addressed the team, saying "historically our winter teams have been the child racked by self-doubt, shy in nature as we saw our big brother, our summer Games team, take on and conquer the world." He added, "but over time we have developed a belief in ourselves".

Australia competed in five sports in 2002, the fewest sports entered in since 1984. Australian cross-country skiers were absent for the first time since 1976, and there were no bobsleigh sliders for the first time since Australia's debut in the sport in 1988. This was partly due to the AOC's higher selection standards than those of the IOC. Australian bobsledder Will Alstergren

Will Alstergren

Will Alstergren was the captain of the Australian bobsled team in 2002. His team met the International Olympic Committee qualifying standards for the 2002 Winter Olympics, but the Australian Olympic Committee used higher standards and did not send them to compete...

lamented that "We also beat half the teams currently in Salt Lake City, but unfortunately we couldn't meet the very high standard of the AOC". According to the Skiing Australia Cross Country Committee, tougher AOC selection standards contributed to the failure to compete in the discipline in 2002.

In 2002, Australia won their first two gold medals, the first time any southern hemisphere country had won an event. Australia's maiden gold came in highly unlikely circumstances. Steven Bradbury, a member of the bronze-winning 1994 relay team, won gold in short track speed skating on 17 February when all of his competitors in the 1,000 m final crashed out on the final turn while jostling for the medal positions. He had qualified for the final after benefiting from similar incidents and disqualifications in the quarter and semifinals. Bradbury came third in his quarterfinal and would have been eliminated, but world champion Marc Gagnon

Marc Gagnon

Marc Gagnon is a French Canadian short track speed skater. He is a four-time Overall World Champion for 1993, 1994, 1996 and 1998, and winner of three Olympic gold medals....

was disqualified for obstruction and the Australian progressed.

Bradbury's strategy from the semifinal onwards was to cruise behind his opponents and hope that they crashed, as he realised that he could not match their raw pace. His reasoning was that risk-taking by the favourites could cause a racing incident, and if two (or more) riders collided and fell, the remaining three would all receive medals, and that as he was slower than his opponents, trying to challenge them directly would only increase his chance of being caught in a collision and falling.

In the semifinal, three skaters, including the defending champion, crashed into each other and Bradbury moved up into second place to qualify for the final. In the final, Bradbury was substantially slower than his opponents and was safely in last place, around 15 m behind with only 50 m to go, when all four rivals collided and fell over, allowing him to avoid the pile-up and take the victory. The unlikely win turned Bradbury into something of a folk hero across Australia and around the world.

Having won three consecutive World Cup titles, Jacqui Cooper

Jacqui Cooper

was the favourite in the aerials, but injured herself in training and was sent home days before the competition. Alisa Camplin

Alisa Camplin

, who had never won a World Cup event, won after exceeding her rivals' points tally on the second and final jump.

In 2006, Australia sent 40 athletes to compete in 10 sports. It was a record number of competitors and events, and Australian officials publicly declared their expectations of medal success. Aerial skiing medal hopeful Lydia Ierodiaconou

Lydia Ierodiaconou

Lydia Lassila is an Australian Olympic freestyle skier and gold medalist who competed in the 2002 Winter Olympic Games in Salt Lake City, the 2006 Winter Olympic Games in Turin and the 2010 Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver.On 20 October 2010, Lydia was awarded by the Australian Sporting Hall...

injured herself when she landed badly on the second qualification jump, while Jacqui Cooper, who placed first in the qualification round, crashed in both of her finals jumps. Camplin won bronze, her second Olympic medal. Dale Begg-Smith

Dale Begg-Smith

, considered the favourite in moguls skiing, won gold in the event. Torah Bright

Torah Bright

was rated as a medal chance in snowboarding half-pipe, and came fifth. Damon Hayler

Damon Hayler

Damon Hayler is an Australian snowboarder, competing in the snowboard cross. He competed in the 2006 Winter Olympics and was rated as a medal chance....

, rated as a medal chance in snowboard cross, came seventh. Michelle Steele

Michelle Steele

Michelle Steele is an Australian skeleton racer who has competed since 2004. She finished 13th in the women's skeleton event at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin....

, a beach flag sprinter less than two years earlier, was seen as a medal possibility in the skeleton, but inexperience with the intimidating and technical track contributed to her 13th place. As only eight teams competed in the men's short track speed skating relay, Australia had a good mathematical chance of winning a medal, but they failed to reach the final.

In 2010, Australia had its most successful Winter Olympics, ending with two gold and one silver. There were a further seven finishes in the top ten. Flagbearer Bright returned as the favourite and won gold. After falling in her first run in the final—only the highest of the two runs is counted—she had to perform her second run before all the other competitors as she was ranked last after the first phase, and produced the top-score; the later competitors could not match her and she took victory. In 2010, Lassila (née Ierodiaconou) took gold, having come into the event as the reigning World Cup champion and favourite after setting a record score at a recent World Cup competition. After being second after the first jump, she scored highly on her final attempt, and the leader Xu Mengtao

Xu Mengtao

Xu Mengtao is an Chinese aerial skier. She has two World Cup victories. She competed at the 2010 Winter Olympics, where she qualified eighth, and had the highest score after the first jump in the finals, however she crashed on her second jump and ended up in sixth place.Xu captured a silver medal...

from China failed to land her second jump cleanly, sealing Lassila's win. Cooper returned for a final campaign and came fifth. Begg-Smith was again the favorite after three consecutive World Cup wins, but he was narrowly beaten by local skier Alexandre Bilodeau

Alexandre Bilodeau

Alexandre Bilodeau is a Canadian freestyle skier from Montreal, Quebec. Bilodeau currently resides in Rosemère, Quebec. Bilodeau won a gold medal in the men's moguls at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, becoming the first Canadian to win a gold medal at an Olympic Games held in Canada after...

.

Russian-born short-track speed skater Tatiana Borodulina

Tatiana Borodulina

Tatiana Borodulina is a Russian short-track speed skater, who formerly represented Australia.-Career:Borodulina competed for Russia at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Torino, Italy...

, whose citizenship was expedited to allow her to compete, made the semifinals in two events, placing 7th and 11th. In the snowboard cross, Hayler came tenth, while Alex Pullin

Alex Pullin

Alex Pullin is an Australian snowboarder. He competed for Australia at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Snowboard cross. He had the fastest qualifying time in his event, but was eliminated in the first round of competition, finishing in 17th place by virtue of his qualifying time. Pullin has also...

was fastest in the qualification time trial, but crashed in the first round of racing. Scott Kneller

Scott Kneller

Scott Kneller is an Australian freestyle skier. He represented Australia at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver. Competing in the ski cross, he came seventh. He came second in his 1/8 final, and then in his 1/4 final to qualify for the semifinals. In each race there are four competitors and the...

came seventh in the men's ski cross, while Holly Crawford

Holly Crawford

Holly Crawford is an Australian half-pipe snowboarder. She competed in the 2006 Winter Olympics and placed 22nd and 12th in her qualification runs. She ranked 19th out of 34 competitors and did not make the final. Crawford also competed in the 2010 Winter Olympics and finished 8th in the final...

came eighth in half-pipe and Emma Lincoln-Smith

Emma Lincoln-Smith

Emma Lincoln-Smith is an Australian skeleton racer who has competed since 2004. Her best Skeleton World Cup finish was seventh twice ....

tenth in the skeleton.

Infrastructure and training

Although Australia has competed in every Winter Olympics since 1952, it was not until the late 1980s that the athletes were supported by institutionalised training, government infrastructure or sports science. Malcolm Milne

Malcolm Milne

's success prompted the eventual starting of the Australian Ski Federation by Geoff Henke

Geoff Henke

in the 1980s, and with it, a program to sponsor talented young skiers and send them to Europe to hone their craft. The beneficiaries of this program included Lee, Zali Steggall, and aerial skiers Cooper and Marshall. In 1993, a training centre and base called Sonnpark

Sonnpark

was set up in Axams, near Innsbruck

Innsbruck

- Main sights :- Buildings :*Golden Roof*Kaiserliche Hofburg *Hofkirche with the cenotaph of Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor*Altes Landhaus...

, Austria, a joint venture between the Australian and Austrian Olympic Committees for summer and winter sports. Colin Hickey

Colin Hickey

said about Sonnpark "Yeah. It's great ... With that sort of back-up, we'd have given them [the Europeans] a run for their money." Australia sold the base in 2002. After the 1998 Winter Olympics

1998 Winter Olympics

The 1998 Winter Olympics, officially the XVIII Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event celebrated from 7 to 22 February 1998 in Nagano, Japan. Seventy-two nations and 2,176 participans contested in seven sports and 72 events at 15 venues. The games saw the introduction of Women's ice...

in Nagano, the Olympic Winter Institute of Australia (OWIA, initially called the Australian Institute of Winter Sports) was created. It was given a million-dollar annual budget; for the first time, Australia had a federal government–funded full-time winter sports training program to accompany the Australian Institute of Sport

Australian Institute of Sport

The Australian Institute of Sport is a sports training institution in Australia with world class facilities and support services. The Institute's headquarters is situated in Canberra, the capital city of Australia. The 66.0 hectare site campus is in the northern suburb of Bruce, but some of the...

. This led to a steady rise in the number of Australians who won medals at World Cup events in the immediate years after the OWIA's creation. After the 2010 Olympics, the OWIA mooted plans to build a half-pipe course at Perisher in the Australian Alps

Australian Alps

The Australian Alps are the highest mountain ranges of mainland Australia. They are located in southeastern Australia and straddle the Australian Capital Territory, south-eastern New South Wales and eastern Victoria...

, and a water jump in Brisbane

Brisbane

Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...

for aerials freestyle training. In 2010, the OWIA's new training base, Icehouse, was opened in Melbourne

Melbourne

Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...

. The largest facility of its type in the southern hemisphere, it features two large skating rinks and cost AUD58 million.

The Australian Olympic Committee

Australian Olympic Committee

The Australian Olympic Committee is the National Olympic Committee in Australia for the Olympic Games movement. It is a non-profit organisation that selects teams, and raises funds to send Australian competitors to Olympic events organised by the International Olympic Committee .-Background:The...

(AOC, formerly the Australian Olympic Federation) is the peak body responsible for Australia's participation at the Olympics. Aside from funding the participation at the Olympics, the AOC provides money for the training and preparation of athletes. This occurs through their funding of the OWIA, grants for athletes to travel overseas to compete and the provision of monetary awards to athletes and their coaches if they win medals at World Cup events or World Championships in the lead up to the Olympics. The funding of the OWIA by the AOC varies by year, but hovers between AUD500,000 and 1,000,000, with a higher budget in the years immediately before an Olympics. Through the Australian Sports Commission

Australian Sports Commission

The Australian Sports Commission is the governing body responsible for distributing funds and providing strategic guidance for sporting activity in Australia. It is an agency of the Government of Australia within the portfolio of Health and Ageing...

, the federal government also sponsors OWIA, contributing more than half a million dollars a year. In 2009, the OWIA lobbied the government for an increase in its annual budget from AUD2.1m to AUD29.4m, which is still a fraction of the AUD132m that Canada—the host of the 2010 Olympics—is spending. In contrast, the current funding for the Summer Olympics team is AUD128m per annum and the AOC has asked for an increase of AUD108m annually. Recent opinion polls show that around half of the Australian public supports increased government funding of athletes if it results in the winning of more medals. Australia aimed to win two medals in 2010, something that was achieved, and which Chesterman touted as justification for further funding to maintain and increase rankings in the face of growing expenditure by other countries.

Public participation and support for winter sports in Australia

Although Australia is generally considered to be more suited to summer sport, several ice-based sports take place as well. Snow falls on the Australian Alps

Australian Alps

and parts of Tasmania

Tasmania

Tasmania is an Australian island and state. It is south of the continent, separated by Bass Strait. The state includes the island of Tasmania—the 26th largest island in the world—and the surrounding islands. The state has a population of 507,626 , of whom almost half reside in the greater Hobart...

. The Australian Alps are within six hours' drive for residents of Sydney

Sydney

Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...

, but within two hours drive for residents of Melbourne

Melbourne

and Canberra

Canberra

Canberra is the capital city of Australia. With a population of over 345,000, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory , south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Melbourne...

, Tasmanian ski slopes are within an day's drive for residents of the major cities of Hobart

Hobart

Hobart is the state capital and most populous city of the Australian island state of Tasmania. Founded in 1804 as a penal colony,Hobart is Australia's second oldest capital city after Sydney. In 2009, the city had a greater area population of approximately 212,019. A resident of Hobart is known as...

and Launceston

Launceston, Tasmania

Launceston is a city in the north of the state of Tasmania, Australia at the junction of the North Esk and South Esk rivers where they become the Tamar River. Launceston is the second largest city in Tasmania after the state capital Hobart...

. However, the season is quite short, as the snow is skiable for only about four months per year. Skiing in Australia

Skiing in Australia

Skiing in Australia takes place in the high country of the states of New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania, as well as in the Australian Capital Territory, during the Southern Hemisphere winter....

was first introduced by Norwegian miners in the goldrush town of Kiandra, New South Wales

Kiandra, New South Wales

Kiandra is an abandoned gold mining town and the birthplace of Australian skiing. The town is situated in the Snowy Mountains of New South Wales, Australia, in the Snowy River Shire inside the Kosciuszko National Park. Its name is a corruption of Aboriginal 'Gianderra' for 'sharp stones for...

around 1859, near today's Selwyn Snowfields

Selwyn snowfields

Selwyn Snowfields is a small ski resort in the northern part of the Snowy Mountains of New South Wales, Australia, in the Snowy River Shire and Kosciuszko National Park...

ski resort. The sport remains a popular winter activity in the south-eastern states and territories. Major alpine skiing

Alpine skiing

Alpine skiing is the sport of sliding down snow-covered hills on skis with fixed-heel bindings. Alpine skiing can be contrasted with skiing using free-heel bindings: Ski mountaineering and nordic skiing – such as cross-country; ski jumping; and Telemark. In competitive alpine skiing races four...

resorts include Thredbo, Perisher and Charlotte Pass in New South Wales; Mount Hotham

Mount Hotham

Mount Hotham is a mountain in Victoria, Australia. It is home to Hotham Alpine Resort. The mountain is located approximately north east of Melbourne, from Sydney, and from Adelaide by road. Mt Hotham's summit rises to an altitude of above sea level...

, Falls Creek

Falls Creek, Victoria

Falls Creek is a ski-in, ski-out ski resort in north-eastern Victoria, Australia. It is located about 350 kilometres by road from Melbourne in the Alpine National Park, with the nearest town Mount Beauty, approximately 30 kilometres away. The resort lies between an altitude of 1,210 and 1,830...

and Mount Buller in Victoria and Mount Ben Lomond in Tasmania. Victoria has three dedicated cross country ski resorts and extensive areas are available for cross country skiing within national parks including Kosciuszko National Park

Kosciuszko National Park

Kosciuszko National Park covers 690,000 hectares and contains mainland Australia's highest peak, Mount Kosciuszko for which it is named, and Cabramurra the highest town in Australia...

(NSW), Alpine National Park

Alpine National Park

The Alpine National Park is a national park in Victoria , northeast of Melbourne. It covers much of the higher areas of the Great Dividing Range in Victoria, including Victoria's highest point, Mount Bogong and the associated subalpine woodland and grassland of the Bogong High Plains...

(VIC); Namadgi National Park

Namadgi National Park

Namadgi National Park is located in the southwestern part of the Australian Capital Territory, bordering Kosciuszko National Park in New South Wales. It lies approximately 40 km southwest of Canberra, and makes up approximately 46% of the ACT's land area....

(ACT) and in the Tasmanian Wilderness

Tasmanian Wilderness

The Tasmanian Wilderness is a term that is used for a range of areas in Tasmania, Australia.The World Heritage Areas in South West, Western and Central are the most well known. However, there are also other areas in Tasmania that have the elements of being known as wilderness areas, the Tarkine...

.

The Kiandra snow shoe club

Kiandra snow shoe club

The club was formed in 1861 by three Norwegians, Elias Gottaas, Soren Torp and Carl Bjerknes on the Kiandra Gold Fields, NSW. This original Kiandra ski club is now recognised as the first snow ski club in the world, it also carries the distinction of being the longest continuously operating...

is easily among the oldest continuing ski clubs in the world and was established by Norwegian gold prospectors in the mid-19th century. The Australian gold rushes

Australian gold rushes

The Australian gold rush started in 1851 when prospector Edward Hammond Hargraves claimed the discovery of payable gold near Bathurst, New South Wales, at a site Edward Hargraves called Ophir.Eight months later, gold was found in Victoria...

first brought a population of skiers to the Australian snowfields in the 1860s. Ski chalets were established closer to Mount Kosciuszko

Mount Kosciuszko

Mount Kosciuszko is a mountain located in the Snowy Mountains in Kosciuszko National Park. With a height of 2,228 metres above sea level, it is the highest mountain in Australia...

in the early 20th century and the construction of the Snowy Mountains Hydro-Electric Scheme brought easier access and European workers with an interest in skiing, who helped built the modern ski resorts of New South Wales. In 2004, a mogul course called "Toppa's Dream" was constructed on Blue Cow

Blue Cow, New South Wales

Blue Cow is part of Perisher ski resort in the Snowy Mountains of New South Wales, Australia, in the Snowy River Shire. It is within the Kosciuszko National Park, and is administered by the New South Wales National Parks and Wildlife Service . During winter months, the only access to the...

. The Mount Buller World Aerials is an annual event on the World Cup calendar. Aerial skiers practice extensively on water before trying jumps on snow; Camplin jumped in a pond outside Melbourne. The Kangaroo Hoppet

Kangaroo Hoppet

The Kangaroo Hoppet is the Australian long distance cross-country skiing race in the Worldloppet Ski Federation. It is held in Falls Creek, Victoria...

, a member of the Worldloppet Ski Federation

Worldloppet Ski Federation

The Worldloppet Ski Federation is a federation of long distance cross-country skiing events whose aim is to promote cross-country skiing through various ski races. The federation was founded in 1978 in Uppsala, Sweden.-Locations:...

series of cross-country skiing races, is an annual citizen race that attracts competitors from several countries. Ski jumping

Ski jumping

Ski jumping is a sport in which skiers go down a take-off ramp, jump and attempt to land as far as possible down the hill below. In addition to the length of the jump, judges give points for style. The skis used for ski jumping are wide and long...

is currently non-existent in Australia.

Many major Australian cities have indoor ice rink

Ice rink

An ice rink is a frozen body of water and/or hardened chemicals where people can skate or play winter sports. Besides recreational ice skating, some of its uses include ice hockey, figure skating and curling as well as exhibitions, contests and ice shows...

s, enabling participation in some winter sports regardless of the climate. These began to appear at the end of the 19th century, and ice hockey was played as early as 1904. Sydney hosted the 1991 short track speed skating World Championships, and the 2001 Goodwill Games

Goodwill Games

The Goodwill Games was an international sports competition, created by Ted Turner in reaction to the political troubles surrounding the Olympic Games of the 1980s...

—hosted in Brisbane—included figure skating. Australia has no tracks usable for bobsleigh, luge and skeleton, but there is a bobsleigh push track in the Docklands

Melbourne Docklands

Docklands is an inner city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia occupying an area extending up to 2 km west of and adjacent to Melbourne's Central Business District . Its Local Government Area is the City of Melbourne...

area of Melbourne.

In keeping with an existing tradition for Australian gold medallists at the Summer Olympics, Bradbury, Camplin and Begg-Smith's victories were recognised by Australia Post

Australia Post

Australia Post is the trading name of the Australian Government-owned Australian Postal Corporation .-History:...

, which released stamps depicting their triumphs, and gave the athletes royalties for the use of their image. Due to the relative lack of interest in winter sport in Australia, both Camplin and Bradbury had been without sponsorship before their Olympic triumphs, and were effectively broke.

Results

Year	Athletes	Sports	Best result	Athlete	Event
1936 Australia at the 1936 Winter Olympics Australia's first appearance at the Winter Olympic Games was at the 1936 Winter Olympics in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany. Australia sent one athlete, Kenneth Kennedy....	1	1	29th	Kenneth Kennedy	500 m speed skating
1940 1940 Winter Olympics The anticipated 1940 Winter Olympics, which would have been officially known as the V Olympic Winter Games, were to be celebrated in 1940 in Sapporo, Japan.The games were cancelled due to the onset of World War II... and 1944 1944 Winter Olympics The anticipated 1944 Winter Olympics, which would have been officially known as the V Olympic Winter Games , were to be celebrated in February 1944 in Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy... Olympics cancelled, and Australia did not compete in 1948 1948 Winter Olympics The 1948 Winter Olympics, officially known as the V Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event celebrated in 1948 in St. Moritz, Switzerland. The Games were the first to be celebrated after World War II; it had been twelve years since the last Winter Games in 1936...
1952 Australia at the 1952 Winter Olympics Australia's second Winter Olympic Games appearance was at the 1952 Winter Olympics in Oslo, Norway. It was 16 years since Australia's last Winter Games, as the 1940 and 1944 Winter Olympics were cancelled, and Australia did not compete in the 1948 Winter Olympics. Australia sent nine athletes and...	9	4	10th	Adrian Swan Adrian Swan Adrian Swan is an Australian figure skater. He represented Australia at the 1952 Winter Olympics, where he placed 10th. He was the first men's singles skater to represent Australia at the Olympics. In 1951, he also competed at the British Figure Skating Championships...	Figure skating
1956 Australia at the 1956 Winter Olympics Australia competed in the Winter Olympic Games for the third time at the 1956 Winter Olympics at Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italy. Australia sent 10 athletes that competed in alpine skiing, figure skating and speed skating....	10	3	7th	Colin Hickey Colin Hickey Colin Edward Hickey was an Australian speed skater. He represented Australia at the 1952, 1956 and 1960 Winter Olympics. His seventh place in the 1956 Winter Olympics was Australia's best result until 1976....	500 m speed skating
1960 Australia at the 1960 Winter Olympics Australia competed at the 1960 Winter Olympics in Squaw Valley, United States. This was the first and last time Australia competed in ice hockey and nordic combined. While ice hockey gave Australia its only top ten finish in this games, the team lost all of their matches, conceding double-digit goals...	31	6	12th	Mason Jacqueline Mason Jacqueline "Jackie" Mason Kendall-Baker is a former Australian pair skater who competed at the 1956 and 1960 Winter Olympics in a pairing with Mervyn Bower. In 1956 they failed to take to the ice after Bower was injured.Gordon, p. 522. In 1960, they placed 12th out of 13 duos.-Results:- References... and Bower Mervyn Bower Mervyn John Bower is a former Australian pair skater who competed at the 1956 and 1960 Winter Olympics in a pairing with Jacqueline Mason. In 1956 they failed to take to the ice after Bower was injured.Gordon, p. 522. In 1960, they placed 12th out of 13 duos.-Results:- References :*...	Figure skating (pairs)
1964 Australia at the 1964 Winter Olympics Australia competed at the 1964 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck, Austria.Six athletes were sent, and Australia competed only in Alpine skiing...	6	1	27th	Christine Smith Christine Smith (skier) Christine Idris Smith was an Australian alpine skier. She has been described as a "long-haired blonde with an 'all-Australian girl next door' image."...	Downhill
1968 Australia at the 1968 Winter Olympics Australia competed at the 1968 Winter Olympics in Grenoble, France.Three athletes were sent, and Australia competed in alpine skiing, cross-country skiing and speed skating....	3	3	24th	Malcolm Milne Malcolm Milne Malcolm Milne is a former Australian Olympic skier.In 1968, at the age of 19, Malcolm competed in his first Olympics at Grenoble, France. In an era dominated by Jean-Claude Killy, Malcolm finished twenty-fourth of eighty-six starters, with a time only 5.51 seconds behind Killy...	Downhill and slalom
1972 Australia at the 1972 Winter Olympics Australia competed at the 1972 Winter Olympics in Sapporo, Japan.Malcolm Milne, who won an international downhill race at Val d'Isère, France in 1970, almost fell during the downhill race, denying him a chance at an Olympic medal.-Alpine skiing:...	4	2	18th	Colin Coates Colin Coates Colin Victor Coates is a former ice speed skater from Australia, who represented his native country in – a record – six consecutive Winter Olympics, starting in 1968 in Grenoble, France....	10,000 m speed skating
1976 Australia at the 1976 Winter Olympics Australia competed at the 1976 Winter Olympics in Innsbruck, Austria.Colin Coates' sixth place in 10000 metres speed skating was Australia's best result so far at the Winter Olympics.-Alpine skiing:Men...	8	3	6th	Colin Coates Colin Coates Colin Victor Coates is a former ice speed skater from Australia, who represented his native country in – a record – six consecutive Winter Olympics, starting in 1968 in Grenoble, France....	10,000 m speed skating
1980 Australia at the 1980 Winter Olympics Australia competed at the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, United States.Australia came eleventh in the figure skating pairs, but that was in a field of eleven...	10	4	17th	Jacqui Cowderoy Jacqui Cowderoy Jacqui Cowderoy is a former Australian alpine skier who competedat the 1980 Winter Olympics. She came 17th out of 19 competitors in the slalom and was disqualified in the giant slalom.-References:...	Slalom
1984 Australia at the 1984 Winter Olympics Australia competed at the 1984 Winter Olympics in Sarajevo, Yugoslavia.Eleven athletes participated, competing in alpine skiing, biathlon, cross-country skiing, figure skating and speed skating...	11	5	19th	Steven Lee Steven Lee Steven Lee is an Australian alpine skier. He competed in the 1984, 1988 and 1992 Winter Olympics, and had a competitive career lasting just on 25 years. He is the second of only 3 Australian skiers ever to claim victory on the Alpine World Cup circuit...	Downhill
1988 Australia at the 1988 Winter Olympics Australia competed at the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary, Canada.Eighteen athletes participated, competing in alpine skiing, biathlon, cross-country skiing, figure skating and speed skating, and for the first time bobsleigh...	18	6	10th	Danny Kah Danny Kah Danny Kah is a former ice speed skater from Australia, who represented his native country in three consecutive Winter Olympics, starting in 1988 in Calgary, Canada....	5,000 m speed skating
1992 Australia at the 1992 Winter Olympics Australia competed at the 1992 Winter Olympics in Albertville, France.23 athletes competed, participating in alpine skiing, biathlon, bobsleigh, cross-country skiing, figure skating, freestyle skiing, luge, short track speed skating and speed skating...	23	9	7th	Relay team	5,000 m short track relay
1994 Australia at the 1994 Winter Olympics Australia competed at the 1994 Winter Olympics in Lillehammer, Norway.Australia won a bronze medal in the men's 5000 metres short track relay, the first medal at the Winter Olympic Games for the nation...	27	9	3rd	Relay team	5,000 m short track relay
1998 Australia at the 1998 Winter Olympics Australia competed at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan.A total number of 24 athletes competed, participating in alpine skiing, biathlon, bobsleigh, cross-country skiing, figure skating, freestyle skiing, short-track speed skating and snowboarding, which appeared for the first time at the...	24	8	3rd	Zali Steggall Zali Steggall Zali Steggall is Australia's most internationally successful alpine skier, winning a bronze medal in slalom at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, and a World Championship gold medal in 1999. Steggall's long Olympic career extended from Albertville in 1992 to Salt Lake City in 2002...	Slalom
2002 Australia at the 2002 Winter Olympics Australia competed at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, United States, winning two gold medals the nation's best performance at the Winter Games prior to Vancouver.-Medalists:- Overview :...	27	5	1st	Steven Bradbury Steven Bradbury Steven John Bradbury OAM is a former Australian short track speed skater and four-time Olympian, who won the 1,000 m event at the 2002 Winter Olympics after all of his opponents were involved in a last corner pile-up...	1,000 m short track
	27	5	1st	Alisa Camplin Alisa Camplin Alisa Camplin OAM is an Australian aerial skier who won gold at the 2002 Winter Olympics, the second ever winter olympic gold medal for Australia. At the 2006 Winter Olympics, Camplin finished third, a bronze medal...	Aerials
2006 Australia at the 2006 Winter Olympics Australia competed at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, Italy. The team of 40 athletes was the largest ever for Australia, surpassing the team of 31 that participated at the 1960 Winter Olympics....	40	10	1st	Dale Begg-Smith Dale Begg-Smith Dale Begg-Smith is an Australian-Canadian freestyle skier. Begg-Smith won the gold medal for Australia, his adopted country, in the men's moguls event at the 2006 Winter Olympics and silver at the 2010 Winter Olympics...	Moguls
2010 Australia at the 2010 Winter Olympics Australia participated at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. A team of forty athletes was selected to compete in eleven sports...	40	11	1st	Torah Bright Torah Bright Torah Jane Bright is an Australian snowboarder. She turned pro at age 14 and finished fifth in snowboarding at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Torino, Italy. She lives and trains in the area of Salt Lake City, Utah, USA...	Half-pipe snowboarding
	40	11	1st	Lydia Lassila	Aerials

Medalists

Name	Games	Sport	Event
Kieran Hansen Kieran Hansen Kieran Hansen is an Australian short track speed skater who competed in the 1992 Winter Olympics, in the 1994 Winter Olympics, and in the 1998 Winter Olympics.... Andrew Murtha Andrew Murtha Andrew Murtha is an Australian short track speed skater who competed in the 1992 Winter Olympics and in the 1994 Winter Olympics.... Richard Nizielski Richard Nizielski Richard Nizielski is an Australian short track speed skater who competed in the 1992 Winter Olympics, in the 1994 Winter Olympics, and in the 1998 Winter Olympics.-Early life:...	1994 Lillehammer 1994 Winter Olympics The 1994 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XVII Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event celebrated from 12 to 27 February 1994 in and around Lillehammer, Norway. Lillehammer failed to win the bid for the 1992 event. Lillehammer was awarded the games in 1988, after having beat...	Short track speed skating Short track speed skating at the 1994 Winter Olympics The 1994 Winter Olympic Games Short Track results-500m:-1,000m:This unique race was one of the most unusual in the short history of short track speed skating. The bronze medal was won by an athlete that was not even in the final race. Derrick Campbell of Canada was obstructed by the Briton Nicky...	Men's 5,000 metre relay
	1998 Nagano 1998 Winter Olympics The 1998 Winter Olympics, officially the XVIII Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event celebrated from 7 to 22 February 1998 in Nagano, Japan. Seventy-two nations and 2,176 participans contested in seven sports and 72 events at 15 venues. The games saw the introduction of Women's ice...	Alpine skiing Alpine skiing at the 1998 Winter Olympics Alpine skiing at the 1998 Winter Olympics consisted of ten events held near Nagano, Japan. The speed events were held at Hakuba and the technical events at Shiga Kogen. There were a number of postponements due to weather; the races were run from February 10-21, 1998.-Downhill:The event was held...	Women's slalom
	2002 Salt Lake City 2002 Winter Olympics The 2002 Winter Olympics, officially the XIX Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event that was celebrated in February 2002 in and around Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. Approximately 2,400 athletes from 77 nations participated in 78 events in fifteen disciplines, held throughout...	Short track speed skating Short track speed skating at the 2002 Winter Olympics 2002 Winter Olympic Games Short track speed skating. All events were held at the Salt Lake Ice Center.-Medal table:-Men's events:-Women's events:-References:*...	Men's 1,000 metres
	2002 Salt Lake City 2002 Winter Olympics The 2002 Winter Olympics, officially the XIX Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event that was celebrated in February 2002 in and around Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. Approximately 2,400 athletes from 77 nations participated in 78 events in fifteen disciplines, held throughout...	Freestyle skiing Freestyle skiing at the 2002 Winter Olympics Four freestyle skiing events were held at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, at the venue in Deer Valley. There were both men's and women's competition in both aerials and moguls events...	Women's aerials
	2006 Turin 2006 Winter Olympics The 2006 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XX Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated in Turin, Italy from February 10, 2006, through February 26, 2006. This marked the second time Italy hosted the Olympic Winter Games, the first being the VII Olympic Winter...	Freestyle skiing Freestyle skiing at the 2006 Winter Olympics Four freestyle skiing events were held at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, at the venue in Sauze d'Oulx. There were both men's and women's competition in both aerials and moguls events...	Men's moguls
	2006 Turin 2006 Winter Olympics The 2006 Winter Olympics, officially known as the XX Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event which was celebrated in Turin, Italy from February 10, 2006, through February 26, 2006. This marked the second time Italy hosted the Olympic Winter Games, the first being the VII Olympic Winter...	Freestyle skiing Freestyle skiing at the 2006 Winter Olympics Four freestyle skiing events were held at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, at the venue in Sauze d'Oulx. There were both men's and women's competition in both aerials and moguls events...	Women's aerials
	2010 Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics The 2010 Winter Olympics, officially the XXI Olympic Winter Games or the 21st Winter Olympics, were a major international multi-sport event held from February 12–28, 2010, in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, with some events held in the suburbs of Richmond, West Vancouver and the University...	Snowboarding Snowboarding at the 2010 Winter Olympics The snowboarding competition of the Vancouver 2010 Olympics was held at Cypress Mountain. The events were held between the 15th and 27th February 2010.-Medal table:-Men's events:-Women's events:-Competition Schedule:...	Women's halfpipe
	2010 Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics The 2010 Winter Olympics, officially the XXI Olympic Winter Games or the 21st Winter Olympics, were a major international multi-sport event held from February 12–28, 2010, in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, with some events held in the suburbs of Richmond, West Vancouver and the University...	Freestyle skiing Freestyle skiing at the 2010 Winter Olympics The freestyle skiing competition of the 2010 Winter Olympics was held at Cypress Mountain. The events took place between the 13 and 25 February 2010, and included a new event for these Olympics, ski cross.- Medal table :-Men's Events:- Women's Events :...	Women's aerials
	2010 Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics The 2010 Winter Olympics, officially the XXI Olympic Winter Games or the 21st Winter Olympics, were a major international multi-sport event held from February 12–28, 2010, in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, with some events held in the suburbs of Richmond, West Vancouver and the University...	Freestyle skiing Freestyle skiing at the 2010 Winter Olympics The freestyle skiing competition of the 2010 Winter Olympics was held at Cypress Mountain. The events took place between the 13 and 25 February 2010, and included a new event for these Olympics, ski cross.- Medal table :-Men's Events:- Women's Events :...	Men's moguls

Medal tally

Year	Gold	Silver	Bronze	Total	Rank
1994	0	0	1	1	22
1998	0	0	1	1	22
2002	2	0	0	2	15
2006	1	0	1	2	17
2010	2	1	0	3	13

Overview by sport

The Olympic Winter Institute of Australia

Olympic Winter Institute of Australia

has programs in alpine skiing, freestyle skiing (aerial and mogul), snowboarding, short track speed skating, figure skating and (along with the Australian Institute of Sport

Australian Institute of Sport

) skeleton. Australia also competed in biathlon, cross-country skiing, bobsleigh and luge at the 2006 Winter Olympics

2006 Winter Olympics

Alpine skiing

Australia has competed in alpine skiing

Alpine skiing at the Winter Olympics

Alpine skiing has been contested at every Winter Olympics since 1936, when a combined event was held in Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany. From 1948–80, the Winter Olympics also served as the World Championships in Olympic years...

at every Olympics since 1952. Australia's first female skier, Christine Davy

Christine Davy

, competed in 1956. Malcolm Milne

Malcolm Milne

was considered a possible medalalist at the 1972 Olympics, having finished on the podium at the world championships, but a knee injury and a near fall snuffed out his chances.

Steven Lee

Steven Lee

represented Australia at three Winter Olympics; he won a World Cup event in Furano

Furano, Hokkaido

is a city in the prefecture of Hokkaido located in the southern reaches of Kamikawa Subprefecture, under whose jurisdiction it resides. Well-known throughout Japan as a tourism destination, it is famous for its lavender fields, the television drama Kita no Kuni kara and the Furano Ski Resort, which...

, Japan in the Super G event in 1985, and was the second Australian to do so. He achieved three top-25 finishes in his career. Zali Steggall

Zali Steggall

won Australia's second Olympic bronze in the slalom event in 1998. Four skiers represented Australia in 2006 but only half the number participated in 2010. Apart from Milne, Lee and Steggall, Australia has had little impact in alpine skiing; only four other athletes have placed in the top half of an event.

Biathlon

Australia has participated in biathlon

Biathlon at the Winter Olympics

Biathlon debuted at the 1960 Winter Olympics in Squaw Valley with the men's 20 km individual event. At the 1968 Winter Olympics in Grenoble, the men's 4×7.5 km relay debuted, followed by the 10 km sprint event at the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, New York...

at every Olympics since 1984 except for 2002; Kerryn Rim's eighth place in 1994 in the 15 km individual event was their best result. Cameron Morton

Cameron Morton

Cameron Morton is an Australian biathlete who competed at the 2006 Winter Olympics. He came 83rd and 82nd out of 89 and 90 competitors respectively in the 20 km and 10 km event.- References :...

represented Australia in 2006 and finished in the bottom 10% in each of his two races. In 2010, Australia's sole representative Alexei Almoukov came second last in his event—one competitor did not finish. Rim's result remains the only top-20 finish by an Australian in the discipline, and more than 80% of Australian entrants have finished in the bottom half of the field, including many in the bottom fifth.

Figure skating

Australia first competed in figure skating

Figure skating at the Olympic Games

Figure skating has been contested in the Olympic Games since the 1908 Summer Olympics. In 1908 and 1920, the figure skating competitions were held in conjunction with the Games of the Olympiad...

in 1952, and has competed in 1956, 1960 and every Olympics since 1980. In earlier years, Australia earned some last places or near-misses. Until 1988, no Australian had placed above the 20th percentile, but results have slowly improved; Anthony Liu

Anthony Liu

Anthony Liu is an Chinese-Australian figure skater. He originally represented China but became an Australian citizen in 1996. He is a seven time Australian national champion. He represented Australia at the 1998 Winter Olympics, where he placed 25th, and at the 2002 Winter Olympics, where he...

finished 10th out of 28 competitors in the men's event in 2002. Joanne Carter

Joanne Carter

Joanne 'Jo' Carter is an Australian figure skater. She is the 2007 Australian national champion. She skates at Canternbury, Norwest & Macquarie. She began skating at 4 years of age and went on to represent Australia in the 1998 Winter Olympics and the 2006 Winter Olympics. She placed 25th in Torino...

represented Australia in 2006. She had placed 12th in 2002 and apart from Liu is the only Australian to have placed in the top half of the field. In 2010, Australia's lone participant Cheltzie Lee

Cheltzie Lee

Cheltzie Lee is an Australian figure skater. She is the 2010 Australian national champion and 2007-2008 junior national champion.- Career :...

came 20th. Australia has competed in ice dancing only once—in 1988—when their solitary representative in both the men and women's individual event came last.

Freestyle skiing

Australia has contested moguls freestyle skiing

Freestyle skiing at the Winter Olympics

Freestyle skiing has been contested at the Winter Olympic Games since the 1992 Winter Games in Albertville. It was a demonstration sport at the 1988 Winter Olympics, with moguls, aerials, and ballet events. Moguls became an official medal sport at the 1992 games, while aerials and ballet were...

in every Olympics since it became an official sport in 1992, as well as 1988, when it was a demonstration sport. Australia has participated in every aerial freestyle event since it became official in 1994, as well as 1992, when it was a demonstration event.

Unlike in other winter disciplines, Australia started in the upper half of the field in the moguls; Nicholas Cleaver

Nicholas Cleaver

Nicholas Cleaver is an Australian freestyle skier, who represented Australia in the Winter Olympics, in 1992 and 1994.He competed in the men's moguls and placed 11th out of 47 in 1992. He came 16th out of 29 in 1994.- References :...

and Adrian Costa

Adrian Costa

Adrian Costa is an Australian freestyle skier, who represented Australia in four Winter Olympics from 1992 to 2002.He competed in the men's moguls and placed 14th out of 47 in 1992. He came 14th out of 29 in 1994 and 21st of 30 in 1998. In his swansong in 2002, he came 18th out of 30.- References :...

placed 11th and 14th out of 47 competitors in 1992. Since then, the results deteriorated into the lower half of the rankings, until 2006, when Canadian-born Dale Begg-Smith

Dale Begg-Smith

won gold and four Australians qualified for the 35-man competition. Manuela Berchtold

Manuela Berchtold

Manuela Berchtold is an Australian freestyle skier, who represented Australia at the 2002 and 2006 Winter Olympics.She competed in the women's moguls and placed 27th in 2002. She was hampered by injuries between Olympics and had a knee reconstruction. In 2006, she came came 16th in the qualifying...

, the only female Australian representative in 2006, came 14th out of 30 competitors. In 2010, Begg-Smith won silver, while two other moguls racers, one male and one female, were outside the top half and did not pass the first round.

Australia has been strong in women's aerial skiing, having recruited gymnasts into the sport, and Kirstie Marshall

Kirstie Marshall

and Jacqui Cooper

Jacqui Cooper

have both been regarded as major medal chances in the last 15 years. However, both were plagued by injuries and crashes and failed to medal at the Olympic level despite enjoying success in World Cup or world-championship events. Alisa Camplin

Alisa Camplin

won Australia's second gold in 2002. Australia fielded 4 of the 23 qualifiers in the women's aerials in 2006. Lydia Ierodiaconou

Lydia Ierodiaconou

injured herself when she landed badly in the second qualification jump and failed to reach the final. Camplin and Cooper contested the aerials finals, after the latter qualified first with a world record score of 213.36. Cooper managed only 152.69 in the final and finished eighth, and Camplin went on to win bronze. In 2010, Lassila (née Ierodiaconou) took gold. After being second after the first jump, she scored highly on her final attempt, and the leader Xu Mengtao

Xu Mengtao

from China failed to land her second jump cleanly, sealing Lassila's win. Cooper returned for a final campaign and came fifth, while Elizabeth Gardner

Elizabeth Gardner

Elizabeth Gardner is an Australian freestyle skier-Professional career:Gardner made her professional debut on 8 September 2001 at the Mount Buller women's aerial event. Since her debut, she has competed the Europa, Nor-Am, and World Cup...

came 12th in the final. In contrast, Australia has not had a strong male tradition. Until 2010, no male had competed in aerials—one athlete was selected but did not end up taking to the snow due to injury. In 2010, David Morris ended the trend and came 13th out of 25 entrants.

Ski cross was introduced in 2010. Scott Kneller

Scott Kneller

reach the semifinals and placed seventh in the male competition, while Jenny Owens

Jenny Owens

Jenny Owens , from Sydney, Australia is an Australian freestyle skier currently living in Freshwater, New South Wales....

and Katya Cremer came 13th and 15th, all in the top half of the field.

Nordic events

Australia has competed in cross-country skiing

Cross-country skiing at the Winter Olympics

Cross-country skiing has been contested at the Winter Olympic Games since the first Winter Games in 1924. The women's events were first contested at the 1952 Winter Olympics.- Events :- Medal table :- Number of Cross-country skiers by Nation :...

in 1952, 1960, 1968, 1980 to 1998, and since 2006. The two Australian representatives in 1952 occupied the last two places, and before 1984, no Australian finished above the bottom 15% of racers. Results have slowly improved, but most Australian entrants in the last two decades have placed in the bottom 25%. In 1992, Anthony Evans

Anthony Evans (skier)

Anthony Evans is a former Australian cross country skier, who represented Australia at three Olympics from the 1992 Winter Olympics to the 1998 Winter Olympics....

became the first Australian to place in the top half, finishing in the top 40 in two events. Australia fielded three competitors in cross-country skiing in 2006, its largest contingent in the event. Paul Murray

Paul Murray (skier)

Paul Murray is an Australian cross country skier who has competed since 1997. Competing in two Winter Olympics, he earned his best finish of 20th in the team sprint event at Vancouver in 2010 while earning his best individual finish of 51st in the individual sprint event at Turin four years...

and Esther Bottomley

Esther Bottomley

Esther Bottomley is an Australian cross country skier who has competed since 2000. Competing in two Winter Olympics, she earned her best finish of 50th in the individual sprint event at Vancouver in 2010....

competed in the sprint; Clare-Louise Brumley

Clare-Louise Brumley

Clare-Louise Brumley is an Australian cross country skier, who represented Australia at the 2006 Winter Olympics.She was selected for the pursuit and 30 km freestyle, but could only compete in the former due to illness. She placed 42nd out of 67 entrants....

was selected for the pursuit and 30 km freestyle, but competed only in the former due to illness. Nobody broke into the top half in their respective races. At the 2010 Games, Australia had three representatives. Ben Sim

Ben Sim

Ben Sim is an Australian cross-country skier who has competed since 2002. At the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver, he finished 20th in the team sprint, 45th in the 15 km, and 47th in the 15 km + 15 km double pursuit event.Sim's best finish at the FIS Nordic World Ski Championships was 14th twice...

came in the top half in one event, but he, Bottomley and Murray finished in the bottom 20% in their remaining four events. Australia has never competed in ski jumping

Ski jumping

, and their sole entry in Nordic combined

Nordic combined

The Nordic combined is a winter sport in which athletes compete in both cross-country skiing and ski jumping.- History :While Norwegian soldiers are known to have been competing in Nordic skiing since the 19th century, the first major competition in Nordic combined was held in 1892 in Oslo at the...

was by Hal Nerdal

Hal Nerdal

in 1960, who came last.

Sliding events

The first Australian to compete in bobsleigh

Bobsleigh at the Winter Olympics

Bobsleigh has been contested at the Winter Olympic Games since the first Winter Games in 1924, with the exception of the 1960 games in Squaw Valley when the organizing committee decided not to build a track in order to reduce expenses. Other than that exception, the four-man competition has been...

represented Great Britain. Frederick McEvoy

Frederick McEvoy

Frederick Joseph McEvoy was an Australian/British multi-discipline sportsman and socialite. He had most sporting success as a bobsledder in the late 1930s, winning several medals including three golds at the FIBT World Championships. He married several wealthy heiresses and was a close friend of...

drove the British two-man and four-man bobsleighs in 1936, earning fourth place and a bronze respectively, and carried the British flag at the opening ceremony. Australia first competed in bobsleigh

Bobsleigh

in 1988, and has competed in the event in every Olympics since, except for 2002. Paul Narracott

Paul Narracott

Paul Narracott is a retired Australian sprinter, who was Australian Junior 100/200 metres champion. In 1977 he won his first of six Australian senior 100 metres championships, and was also 2nd in the 200 metres championships on four occasions.- Career :In 1977 he won gold at the 100 metres at the...

became the first Australian to compete at both the Summer and Winter Olympics: he competed in the 1984 Summer Olympics in athletics, and participated in bobsleigh in 1992 as the brakeman. Australia competed in luge

Luge

A Luge is a small one- or two-person sled on which one sleds supine and feet-first. Steering is done by flexing the sled's runners with the calf of each leg or exerting opposite shoulder pressure to the seat. Racing sleds weigh 21-25 kilograms for singles and 25-30 kilograms for doubles. Luge...

in 1992 and 1994. They did not compete in skeleton

Skeleton (sport)

Skeleton is a fast winter sliding sport in which an individual person rides a small sled down a frozen track while lying face down, during which athletes experience forces up to 5g. It originated in St. Moritz, Switzerland as a spin-off from the popular British sport of Cresta Sledding...

in 2002.

Australia competed in all three sports in 2006. In bobsleigh, Australia competed in the two-man and two-woman events, and was the highest-placed country to miss qualifications for an Olympic berth in the four-man event at the 2006 Challenge Cup. The Australian Olympic Committee unsuccessfully tried to have the Brazilian bobsleigh team thrown out due to the use of drugs by Armando dos Santos, so that Australia would take its place. Hannah Campbell-Pegg

Hannah Campbell-Pegg

Hannah Campbell-Pegg is an Australian Luge athlete who has competed since 2004. Competing in two Winter Olympics, she finished 23rd in the women's singles event twice Hannah Campbell-Pegg (born 24 June 1982 in Sydney) is an Australian Luge athlete who has competed since 2004. Competing in two...

came 23rd in luge, and Michelle Steele

Michelle Steele

Michelle Steele is an Australian skeleton racer who has competed since 2004. She finished 13th in the women's skeleton event at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin....

, a beach flag sprinter

Flags (sport)

Beach Flags is a sporting event used by Surf lifesavers to practice beach sprinting and reflexes.The game is played by sticking a series of flags into the sand in a row. The competitors lie facing away approximately 20 metres away. Upon a starting signal, the competitors race to the flags and try...

chosen from a systematic program

Skeleton sport in Australia

Australia created a female team in the sport of skeleton in the hope of winning a medal at the 2006 Winter Olympics. Physiologists Dr David Martin and Dr Angus Ross looked at a list of winter sports...

to identify a potential skeleton

Skeleton (sport)

medal-winner from female non-winter athletes, came 13th due to inexperience with the intimidating and technical track. Shaun Boyle

Shaun Boyle

Shaun Boyle is an Australian skeleton racer who competed from 2001 to 2006. He finished 22nd in the men's skeleton event at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin....

represented Australia in the men's skeleton and placed 22nd. In 2010, Australia were represented in every bobsled event, but all finished last, failed to finish due to crashes or had to withdraw due to injuries sustained in earlier races. Australia's sole luger and two male skeleton racers came in the bottom 20%, while Emma Lincoln-Smith

Emma Lincoln-Smith

Emma Lincoln-Smith is an Australian skeleton racer who has competed since 2004. Her best Skeleton World Cup finish was seventh twice ....

and Melissa Hoar

Melissa Hoar

Melissa Hoar is an Australian skeleton racer who has competed since 2004. Her best Skeleton World Cup finish was fifth at Nagano in January 2006....

came 10th and 12th respectively. Until 2010, Australia had placed in the bottom half of the field in every sliding event it has entered, and came last in the luge in 1994. Lincoln-Smith's effort in the skeleton in 2010 changed this record.

Speed skating

Australia has competed in either the long track

Speed skating at the Winter Olympics

Speed skating has been featured as a sport in the Winter Olympics since the first winter games in 1924. Women's events were added to the Olympic program for the first time in 1960.-History:...

or short track

Short track speed skating at the Winter Olympics

Short track speed skating has been a contest at the Winter Olympics since the 1992 Winter Games in Albertville, France. Prior to that, it was a demonstration sport at the 1988 games. The results from the 1988 demonstration competition is not included in the official Olympic statistics...

forms of speed skating at every Olympics that it has attended, except 1964. Australia's Winter Olympic inaugural participant was long track speed skater Kenneth Kennedy, who competed in 1936 and placed in the bottom 25% in all of his four events. Colin Hickey finished seventh in 1956 in the 500 and 1,000 m long track speed skating, and placed 13th and 14th four years later. Until 1968, Hickey's four aforementioned results were the only times that an Australian finished in the top half of their event.

Colin Coates participated in six Winter Olympics, from 1968 to 1988, and came sixth in the 10,000 m event in 1976, Australia's best result before Lillehammer. His four top-11 finishes in 1976 made him only the third Australian to place in the top half of a Winter Olympic event. Before the 1988 Olympics, three other athletes had represented Australia in long track racing, and all had placed near the bottom. In 1988, Danny Kah

Danny Kah

Danny Kah is a former ice speed skater from Australia, who represented his native country in three consecutive Winter Olympics, starting in 1988 in Calgary, Canada....

and Michael Richmond both broke into the top 15 and the top half in two events each, and in 1994, the former recorded Australia's best long track result, finishing fifth in the 5,000 m event. However, Australia did not compete in long track again until 2010, when sole representative Sophie Muir

Sophie Muir

Sophie Muir is an Australian speed skater and a former inline speed skating world champion. Muir was selected in the Australian squad to compete in the Women's 500 metres and Women's 1000 metres, at the 2010 Winter Olympics at Vancouver....

became the first woman to compete for the country in the discipline; she came in the bottom fifth of entrants in both her races.

Short track speed skating has provided the country with many firsts. Australia won its first World Championships in a winter sport when their relay team won the 5,000 m race in 1991, which was hosted in Sydney. However, they crashed at the 1992 Olympics when the discipline was introduced and failed to win a medal, and all of the individual competitors finished in the bottom half of the field. They recovered to post a series of strong performances in Lillehammer in 1994. The short track relay yielded Australia's first Winter Olympic medal, a bronze. The Australians also did well individually; all four representatives finished in the top 13 in at least one of their races, and in the top half in six of their eight events, including top-ten finishes for Steven Bradbury

Steven Bradbury

and Richard Nizielski

Richard Nizielski

Richard Nizielski is an Australian short track speed skater who competed in the 1992 Winter Olympics, in the 1994 Winter Olympics, and in the 1998 Winter Olympics.-Early life:...

.

Bradbury won Australia's first winter gold medal in Salt Lake City in 2002, when he was the "last man standing" in the 1,000 m event. Five men and Emily Rosemond

Emily Rosemond

Emily Rosemond is an Australian short track speed skater, who represented Australia at the 2006 Winter Olympics before switching to track cycling....

competed in short track in 2006. Rosemond placed 12th in the 1,000 m, but none of the others managed to pass the first round. From 1994 to 2006, Bradbury (three times in 2002) and Rosemond have been the only two Australians to finish in the top half of the field, and the men's relay team has missed the final on every occasion. In 2010, the sole male race Lachlan Hay was eliminated in the first round, while the sole female, Tatiana Borodulina

Tatiana Borodulina

Tatiana Borodulina is a Russian short-track speed skater, who formerly represented Australia.-Career:Borodulina competed for Russia at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Torino, Italy...

made the semifinals in two events, placing 7th and 11th.

Team ice sports

Australia has competed once in ice hockey

Ice hockey at the Olympic Games

Ice hockey tournaments have been staged at the Olympic Games since 1920. The men's tournament was introduced at the 1920 Summer Olympics and was transferred permanently to the Winter Olympic Games programme in 1924. The women's tournament was first held at the 1998 Winter Olympics...

, in 1960. The team lost every game, placing last out of nine countries. Australia has not competed in curling

Curling at the Winter Olympics

Curling was included in the program of the inaugural Winter Olympic Games in 1924 in Chamonix. The results of that competition were not considered official by the International Olympic Committee until 2006. Curling was a demonstration sport at the 1932 Games, and then again after a lengthy absence...

as an official sport at the Olympics, but has competed in it as a demonstration sport, placing seventh in 1992. These are the only times that Australia has competed in team sports involving ball-like objects.

Snowboarding

Zeke Steggall

Zeke Steggall is a former Australian Olympic snowboarder. He competed at the 1998 and 2002 Winter Olympics. His sister Zali Steggall was an alpine skier and Australia's first individual Olympic medalist...

—brother of Zali—represented Australia in snowboarding

Snowboarding at the Winter Olympics

Snowboarding is a sport that has been contested at the Winter Olympic Games since the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, Japan. Snowboarding was one of five new sports or disciplines added to the Winter Olympic program between 1992 and 2002, and was the only one not to have been a previous medal or...

's first two appearances at the Olympics in 1998 and 2002, finishing in the bottom 20% in each of his slalom races. The number of events in the discipline was increased and the 2006 team consisted of nine athletes, who competed in all three events for both men and women.

The team representing Australia at the 2006 Winter Olympics was Mitchell Allan

Mitchell Allan

Mitchell Allan is an Australian half-pipe snowboarder. He competed in the 2006 Winter Olympics and placed 19th and 25th in his qualification runs. He ranked 31st out of 44 competitors and did not make the final. He was the youngest Australian on the 2006 Olympic team.-References:...

(halfpipe), Torah Bright

Torah Bright

(halfpipe), Andrew Burton

Andrew Burton

Andrew Burton is an Australian half-pipe snowboarder. He competed in the 2006 Winter Olympics and placed 34th and 26th in his qualification runs. He ranked 32nd out of 44 competitors and did not make the final....

(halfpipe), Holly Crawford

Holly Crawford

(halfpipe), Damon Hayler

Damon Hayler

Damon Hayler is an Australian snowboarder, competing in the snowboard cross. He competed in the 2006 Winter Olympics and was rated as a medal chance....

(snowboard cross), Ben Mates

Ben Mates

Ben Mates is an Australian half-pipe snowboarder. He competed in the 2006 Winter Olympics and placed 43rd and 36th in his qualification runs. He ranked 42nd out of 44 competitors and did not make the final....

(halfpipe), Emanuel Oppliger

Emanuel Oppliger

Emanuel Oppliger is an Australian snowboarder, competing in the parallel giant slalom. He competed in the 2006 Winter Olympics and placed 5th and 15th in the qualification and elimination run. He made it to the 1/8 finals but lost his match-up and ended up being ranked 15th out of 31...

(parallel giant slalom), Johanna Shaw

Johanna Shaw

Johanna Shaw is an Australian snowboarder, competing in the parallel giant slalom. He competed in the 2006 Winter Olympics and was ranked 29th out of 30 competitors and did not make the final.-References:...

(parallel giant slalom) and Emily Thomas

Emily Thomas

Emily Thomas is an Australian snowboarder, competing in the snowboard cross.She placed only 19th and 21st in her two qualifying runs and finished 21st out of 23 and did not make the final.-References:...

(snowboard cross). Bright came fifth, and Hayler came seventh, and the pair were the only Australians—apart from Oppliger (15th)—to finish in the top half of their respective events. In 2010, Bright returned and won gold. After falling in her first run in the final—only the highest of the two runs is counted—she had to perform her second run before all the other competitors as she was ranked last after the first phase, and produced the top-score, which the others could not match. Crawford came eighth in the final. Australia's two male competitors Mates and Scott James

Scott James

Scott James is an Australian snowboarder.James first competed on the international circuit as a 14-year-old at the 2008 Europa Cup in Saas Fee, Switzerland. Throughout the last two World Cup seasons, he has proven himself an up and coming star of the halfpipe, with consistently improving results...

finished in the middle of the field and missed the finals. In the snowboard cross, Hayler came tenth, while Alex Pullin

Alex Pullin

was fastest in the qualification time trial, but crashed in the first round of racing, while the sole female racer Stephanie Hickey finished near bottom. Shaw was again Australia's sole slalom racer, and ended in the bottom half.

Australia at the Winter Paralympics

Australia has competed in every Winter Paralympics since the inaugural games in 1976. Their sole participant in 1976 was Ron Finneran, although he was not an official entrant. In 1980, alpine skier Kyrra Grunnsund became the first official competitor for Australia. The number of Australian athletes increased to two, five, five and six at the next four games, respectively, and all of the athletes were alpine skiers. The participation decreased to four in 1998 and climbed back up to six in 2002. Australia won its first Winter Paralympic medals in 1992, and has medalled at every games since then. All of the medals have been won in alpine skiing, and it was not until 2006 that Australia competed in any other sport.

Australia won four medals in 1992—one gold, one silver and two bronze. Michael Milton

Michael Milton

Michael John Milton, OAM is an Australian Winter Paralympic skier and cyclist. He lost a leg to bone cancer when he was nine years old...

, an amputee alpine skier, won gold in the slalom and silver in the super-G. In paraplegic sit-skiing, David Munk

David Munk

David Munk is a Paralympic alpine skier from Australia. He won a bronze medal at the 1994 Lillehammer Games in the Men's Giant Slalom LWXI event.-References:...

won bronze in the super-G, and Michael Norton

Michael Norton

Michael Norton is a Paralympic alpine skier from Australia. He won a pair of gold medals at the 1994 Lillehammer Games in the Men's Slalom LWXI event and the Men's Super-G LWXI event.-References:...

won bronze in the downhill. In 1994, Australia won three gold, two silver and four bronze medals. Milton won gold in the giant slalom, silver in the slalom and bronze in the downhill and super-G, and Norton won gold in the slalom and super-G. James Paterson, a skier with cerebral palsy, won silver in the downhill and bronze in the giant slalom. Munk won another bronze, this time in the giant slalom. In 1998, Australia won two medals, both through Paterson: gold in the downhill and bronze in the slalom.

In 2002, Australia's medal count consisted of six golds and one silver. Milton swept his disability class, winning gold in the downhill, super-G, giant slalom and slalom. Bart Bunting

Bart Bunting

Bart Bunting is a Paralympic alpine skier from Australia. He won a pair of gold medals at the 2002 Salt Lake City Games in the Men's Downhill B1-3 event and the Men's Super-G B1-3 event. He won a silver medal at the Men's Giant Slalom B1-2 event in the same games.-References:...

, a vision-impaired skier guided by Nathan Chivers, won gold in the downhill and super-G, and silver in the giant slalom.

In 2006, Emily Jansen, a leg amputee alpine skier, became Australia first female Winter Paralympian. James Millar, born without his right forearm, competed in the cross-country and the biathlon, becoming the first Australian to compete in an event outside alpine skiing. Milton attended his last Paralympics, but did not win a medal. A target of two medals was set, which took into account the merging of several disability classes. Australia met this target, as Milton won silver in the downhill and Toby Kane

Toby Kane

Toby Kane is an Australian Paralympian who won bronze in the Men's Super-G - Standing at the 2006 Winter Paralympics. He lost his lower right leg in a car accident when he was two, but has no memory of this or ever skiing on two legs. He is expected to compete in the 2010 Winter Paralympics and is...

won bronze in the super-G. In 2010, Australia won a silver and three bronze, all in alpine skiing. Jessica Gallagher

Jessica Gallagher

Jessica Gallagher is a Paralympic alpine skier from Geelong, Victoria. She was Australia's second female winter Paralympian, and the first Australian woman to win a medal at the Winter Paralympics....

became the first Australian woman to win a medal, taking bronze in the slalom for the visually impaired. Cameron Rahles Rabula won bronze in both the slalom and super combined.

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Early struggles

Henke era

First medals

Golden breakthrough

Infrastructure and training

Public participation and support for winter sports in Australia

Results

Medalists

Medal tally

Overview by sport

Alpine skiing

Biathlon

Figure skating

Freestyle skiing

Nordic events

Sliding events

Speed skating

Team ice sports

Snowboarding

Australia at the Winter Paralympics

See also

External links