Skiing with Olympians inspires love of snow sports

12 | 2 | 2019

Instilling a passion for snow sports was the motivation behind a recent ski camp – Skiing with Olympians - organised by the Chinese Taipei National Olympians Association (NOA). The week-long camp, which took place in Japan’s Shizukuishi resort in late January, sought to introduce winter sports while raising funds for the NOA. Thirty people aged between 10 and 60 took part in the initiative.

Participants were instructed across five days by dual Olympian Antonnio ONG Ming-Yih OLY, who competed in biathlon and cross-country skiing at the Innsbruck 1976 and Sarajevo 1984 Olympic Winter Games, and luge Olympian HUANG Liu-Chung OLY, who also competed in Innsbruck. A further two instructors from the ski association were on hand to help lead lessons. Of the 17 women and 13 men who took part, 18 had never skied before.

“The January skiing camp was a huge success. We were delighted to be able to introduce new people to the joy of snow sports and hopefully inspire them to further take part in the future,” said NOA President, Antonnio ONG Ming-Yih OLY.

He added, “All participants gained confidence on the slopes and improved their technique and skill as the week progressed, but more importantly, they all had fun. This was the first ski camp we have organised, and I would like to thank the Chinese Taipei Ski Association for their support. We hope many more people will be involved in camps in the future.”

The camp also doubled as a fundraising exercise, helping to raise 1,500 USD for the NOA, which will be used to improve services and support to Olympians in the country. Chinese Taipei is currently part of WOA’s NOA Development Pilot Programme. The programme, led by Asia Development Officer Jovina Choo OLY, was set up in 2018 to enhance the development of NOAs in Asia and increase their influence and effectiveness in the lead up to Tokyo 2020 and Beijing 2022.

The Chinese Taipei NOA was officially founded in January 2018 and will seek formal membership to WOA at the next WOA General Assembly taking place after the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.