As the first skiers and snowboarders took to the slopes this week at CairnGorm where the new season opened yesterday (22nd), Hamish Swan, Chairman of the operating company, paid tribute to the remarkable achievement by local girl, Lesley McKenna in topping the World Cup rankings in women’s snowboarding. The third place in the FIS World Cup last weekend at Stoneham, in Canada, coupled with her recent win in Sweden and her earlier ninth spot in Whistler, also in Canada, means that the young Scot from Aviemore holds the lead in the World Cup tour over the Christmas period.
Said Hamish Swan: “This is an outstanding achievement by Lesley McKenna for no British skier or snowboarder in recent years has topped the World Cup rankings at any time in any snowsport discipline. We are delighted, and very proud, that Lesley learned her snowboarding here at CairnGorm and, at a time when it is fashionable in some quarters to take a swipe at Scottish skiing, her success demonstrates the benefits of the good initial grounding, skills tuition and technique training that are available locally. Add to these, Lesley’s commitment and dedication and the results are there for all to see. She is an example of what can be achieved on the World Cup circuit by a local girl from Aviemore.”
“Lesley McKenna’s success story, added to those of Noel and Alain Baxter, shows how important it is that we can continue to create champions from among our local Scottish talent by offering good facilities and letting youngsters coming into the sport realise those dreams and ambitions that they always have at the start of each new season.”
On its opening day of the new season, CairnGorm Mountain attracted over 400 skiers and almost the same number of non-skiers but what was even more significant was that the company’s web site www.cairngormmountain.com received around 75,000 page hits, more than FIVE times its daily average from people seeking information on winter sports conditions.
Said Tania Adams, CairnGorm Mountain’s Marketing Manager: “The first snow flurries shown on the national television news always produce a renewed level of activity among skiers and snow boarders but this level of interest is quite exceptional and shows clearly that, far from being in decline, interest in skiing in Scotland is every bit as great as it has been. We are keeping our fingers crossed for more snow later this week and for some good skiing at CairnGorm over the New Year holidays.”
Ends
Further information from
BILL NOLAN
Tel: 07885 071804
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