Snowing them how it’s done

NICOLE ROACHE, MARKETING MANAGER

What a fantastic snow season. We were blessed with plenty of snow, but we were all wondering if COVID might have scared people off, or after two years of not much skiing and boarding, the kids might not feel up to competing, but happily we were wrong!

It was wonderful to see 55 students of all ages and their families enjoying the Victorian Interschool Snowsports Championships, despite some crazy weather. It was also exciting to see 34 new skiers and boarders join the team, have a great deal of fun, and post some good results.

Results-wise once again we punched above our weight, finishing 8th in the Co-ed Primary Schools and 6th in the Co-ed Secondary Schools competitions which is quite a feat given that these competitions are open to every co-ed school in the state.

Congratulations to our Division 1 Boys Mogul Champion Jasper Atkinson, and the gold medal winning team of Jasper, Tyson Martin and Rory Kearns. Jasper, Tyson and Rory also took the team bronze medal in the Division 1 Boys Slopestyle Ski. Our Division 3 Girls were also outstanding, with Holly Kearns, Lilli Biscan and Abbie Chandler winning the team gold in the Slopestyle Ski and Holly, Lilli and Lucy Borrack winning the team silver in the Moguls. Holly also added an individual bronze medal to her growing trophy cabinet in the Moguls. With scoring teams across all Divisions except Division 2, the College team is developing great depth, and we are seeing huge improvements from many of our athletes who are spending more time on the snow developing their skills. 15 of the 21 students who had competed for College in 2019 recorded improved performances, this means we are going in the right direction!

Australian Interschool Snowsports Championships

The College team of Rory Kearns, Tyson Martin, Holly Kearns, Lilli Biscan, Millie Paton, Harry Garland, Daisy Biscan and Brigid Kearns travelled to Perisher in NSW to compete in the Australian Interschool Snowsports Championships, along with their parents and team coach Andy Deans. The College finished 10th in the Coed Secondary competition and was the third best performing Victorian team, but in the skiing events we were equal best Victorian team with Wesley College. This is a huge result for the College! Congratulations to our medallists Rory Kearns and Tyson Martin who took the bronze in the Division 1 Boys Moguls and Holly Kearns and Lilli Biscan who won silver in the Division 3 Girls Slopestyle Ski. The Division 1 Boys scored points in both of their events and the Division 3 girls who qualified for all four of their events scored points in three events after some misfortunes in the Alpine. Harry Garland finished 22nd in the Division 3 Boys Ski X and Brigid Kearns 40th in the Division 6 Girls Ski X. Daisy Biscan, who qualified for each of her individual events finished 22nd in the Alpine, 27th in the Moguls and 44th in the Ski X.

Across both competitions we can be most proud of the great sportsmanship and resilience from all our team members, no matter what the conditions or results they were happy to be out there and supporting their teammates. It was great to see students giving new events a go, jumping into teams in events that might not have been their specialty and just doing their best. That’s what this is all about, having fun, getting out of your comfort zone, learning and improving while doing something you love.