Dear XC Skiers,

Winter is approaching fast and plenty is afoot in the cross country skiing world. At the recent FIS meetings a number of momentous decisions were made that will have significant impacts on race formats at major international events. This included a resolution for men and women to race the same distances, which for World Cup will soon be only Sprint, 10km, 20km and 50km. A brief summary is included in this FIS Cross Country Committee meeting update from FIS. Ramifications for Australian racing will be tackled in due course.

On the local front we have a number of significant changes in the leadership of the sport. Valerio Leccardi, the Australian Team Head Coach from 2017-2022, has left Snow Australia to take up a coaching position in his home country of Switzerland. I would like to thank Valerio for all his efforts in Australia and with the team in Europe over the past six years, and to wish him all the best with this great coaching opportunity.

As an interim step before appointing a new year-round head coach, we have recently called for expressions of interest for a new lead coach at the National Training Centre at Falls Creek. It’s a short time frame, but I’m confident of finding a good solution for the Australian winter.

I would also like to thank Ben Derrick, who is stepping down from the position of Snow Australia cross country committee chair. Ben has been very active in the cross country community since retiring as an international athlete over 15 years ago, including in addition to his committee roles, national and TD appointments, chief of race for the Victorian Junior Championships, and race director of the Kangaroo Hoppet.  In the interim former SAXC chair Peter Cunningham will take over as committee chair, and selection committee chair Ashleigh Spittle will replace BD on the executive committee.

Also moving on from SAXC after completing their 2-year terms are athlete representatives Casey Wright and Nic Blackwell, whom I would also like to thank for their efforts. The new reps Phoebe Cridland and Adam Barnett have just been appointed and you can read more about their background in this community update.

In the events front, there are two rollerski races left before we switch over to racing on the white stuff. More information on the full winter race calendar and on the upcoming rollerski events in Melbourne and Jindabyne are included below. If you live in Mebourne or nearby, come along to support the first ever FIS event in a an Australian city on May 28/29.

Okay, that's enough writing for now, I look forward to seeing many of you on snow before too long.

Finn Marsland
Cross Country Skiing Program Director

Cross country skiers Phoebe Cridland and Adam Barnett are set to formally be appointed as the 2022-2024 athlete representatives on the Snow Australia Cross Country Committee.

The two U23 athletes were elected unopposed to the two-year positions, replace outgoing athlete representives Casey Wright and Nic Blackwell, and will attend their first committee meeting next week.

Snow Australia is seeking a full-time cross country skiing coach for the National Training Centre at Falls Creek during the Australian winter. The coach will primarily be responsible for coordinating and leading on-snow training throughout the season, including for elite and sub-elite athletes, with key aims of developing technical and athletic abilities and fostering a vibrant daily training environment. 

To celebrate National Career Week (16-22 May), the annual event promoted by the Career Industry Council of Australia to support career development, many organisations including Snow Australia, the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS), the NSW Institute of Sport (NSWIS) and the Victoria Institute of Sport (VIS) are offering athletes like Young Vik resources, webinars and workshops to help shine a light on career opportunities and support networks available for high-performance athletes.

2022 AUS XC Race Calendar

The 2022 Australian Cross Country Skiing Race Calendar has been finalised and is available via both the AUSXC and Snow Australia websites. The structure for championship events has reverted to that of 2019, where the Australian Junior Championships are held on the first weekend of September and a weekend of Australian Open Championship events is held in both NSW and Victoria. The key championship dates and the full calendar can be found HERE.

2022 Melbourne FIS Rollerski International

The countdown is on to the Melbourne FIS Rollerski International on May 28-29. Held on the Yarra Bend "Teardrop" loop within Studley Park, the event features a Sprint event on the Saturday afternoon and Distance events on the Sunday morning. In addition the FIS events, there are also categories for Junior and Masters participants. Further information and registration can be found HERE.

Snowy Mountains Nordic Rollerski Challenge

The Snow Mountains Nordic Rollerski Challenge is on again in Jindabyne on the Queens Birthday Long Weekend. Featuring a Sprint and Team event, both in freestyle technique, the event takes place at Jundabyne Sport & Rec in the afternoon on Saturday June 11. 

The races are open to participants of all standards with basic experience of rollerskiing. Entrants can choose to use their own rollerskis or supplid SWIX Triacs. Registration is via the Snow Australia events system page, with pre-entries due by Wednesday June 8.

The Jindabyne Snow Sale is on Saturday June 11 and is a great opportunity to buy and/or sell new and pre-loved snow sports equipment. 

A full range of new and preloved snow sports equipment will be available, perfect for skiers and snowboarders new to sport and families upgrading gear. 

The Snow Sale is an annual fundraiser for the maintenance and updgrades to the National Snowsports Training Centre Acro facilities, which run community acrobatic programs from Jindabyne.