Connor Wilson named 2014 SA National Ski Champ
HOUGHTON - St John’s College pupil, Connor Wilson has proved he is the top junior skier in South Africa.
After spending most of his August school holidays training and racing in New Zealand, the Dunkeld resident earned top spot at the South African National Alpine Ski Championships at Tiffindell in the Eastern Cape.
According to Wilson who won the SA Junior U21 Alpine Ski Champ title, it was a very tough course as South Africa was simultaneously hosting International Ski Federation (FIS) races, which brought top skiers from Austria, Sweden and Slovenia to the country for the first time.
“The international coaches took turns setting the course for the various races and were particularly harsh when it came to the National Championships,” said Wilson.
Four different slalom races were held over two days, the National Championship, National Junior Championship and two standard FIS races.
This was the first time that Africa had hosted an international FIS race and it proved a huge success.
In spite of the tough competition, Wilson managed to lower his International FIS points in the giant slalom events, making him the highest currently ranked South African in this discipline.
“Snowsports South Africa and the Tiffindell Ski Resort did a wonderful job as the slope conditions were excellent, the races were well-organised and there was great excitement all around,” said his mother, Fay Benzinger-Wilson.
“It was a fantastic experience for our young ski racers to compete against these superb international athletes and to discover new ways to improve their technique.”
Wilson said he had no fewer than five Olympic athletes in many of his races, with most of the competitors from Europe and the United States who use New Zealand as their summer training ground.
