Board Meeting #198

The Snow Australia Board held its 198th meeting on Monday May 26, 2025. Below is a summary of the key outcomes and decisions made at the meeting:

Snow Australia Awards and Community Activity
The Board acknowledged the successful delivery of the 2025 Snow Australia Awards and the additional wintersport and community activity surrounding the event. This included Olympic and Paralympic Team Processing days, Channel 9 athlete interviews and filming, National Discipline Committee and Interschools Committee meetings, and the first meeting of Women of Winter Working Group.
 
Athlete Committee
Members have been appointed to the Athlete Committee, with formal announcements to be made ahead of the first meeting in June.
 
Olympic Leadership Appointment
Director Katya Crema was congratulated on her appointment as Deputy Chef de Mission for the 2026 Milan-Cortina Olympic Winter Games.

Finance
The Board reviewed the half-year financial results with CEO Michael Kennedy.  The organisation remains on track to deliver end of year financials in line with the approved annual budget.  
 
Risk Management
The Board reviewed and approved updates to the Risk Appetite Statement.  The Board also reviewed updates to the Risk Register which were presented by the Finance Governance and Risk Committee. Work is continuing on the Snow Australia Cyber Security Policy, guided by advice from Snow Australia’s IT partners.

Safety remains a priority for the Board and the topic has been embedded at the top of the agenda for each meeting. Michael Kennedy presented new protocols around safety training and reporting for all staff.
 
Coach Development and High Performance
Ben Wordsworth, General Manager - Sport, presented the following to the Board:

• Coach Development Framework (2024–2030).
• The finalised Athlete categorisation for 2025.
• 2025 Emerging Talent Program (ETP) participant handbook.
• 2024/25 Sport reports were submitted to the Board following the northern winter.

Selection Committee
The Selection Committee, Chaired by Scott Kneller, reported back on implementation of the newly implemented Selection Policy and Processes.  All selection nominations made by the National Discipline Committees are reviewed and approved by the Selection Committee on behalf of the Board.

Interschools Planning
Planning for upcoming Interschool events is well underway, with work continuing on the new entry system and more stingent concussion protocols.
 
Governance and Board Development
The Board was updated on the submission to the Australian Sports Commission of its annual Sports Governance Standard assessment.  The survey was overseen by Jacky Storer, Chair of the Finance Governance and Risk Committee.  Snow Australia has continued to improve its governance performance and compliance in accordance with the standard over the past 12 months.  

An additional Board meeting has been scheduled for September. This meeting will focus on governance training, performance reviews, and strategic planning.