In 2006, when the International Ski Federation (our sport’s governing body) voted 114-1 to recommend women's ski jumping inclusion in the Olympics, they were elated.  When the IOC turned them down, they were devastated. The gates to the world’s most prestigious sporting event were slammed shut in their face and the IOC’s rationale didn’t make sense.

They were told women’s ski jumping “lacked universality.” That year, 83 women ski jumpers from 14 nations were jumping at the elite level in the Continental Cup. That same year, the IOC voted to accept skier cross, a totally new sport. In keeping with the IOC’s 1991 decision that all new sports include both men and women, that meant that a sport with 30 female skiers from 11 nations at the World Cup was included, while women jumpers were excluded. At that time, there were also fewer female athletes participating in the World Cups in bobsleigh, luge, skeleton and snowboard cross and yet they participate in the Olympics as well.

In February, the first World Championship for women’s ski jumping was held in Liberec, Czech Republic. The top five finishers came from the United Sates, Germany, Norway, Austria and France. Our World Championship was tight, exciting and highly competitive.

The jumpers felt ignored, baffled by shifting goalposts. Finally in frustration, they launched the lawsuit against the Vancouver Olympic Organizing Committee. VANOC consistently stated that they could do nothing for the jumpers and they “are the wrong plaintiffs.” They have completely missed the point of the discrimination argument. The 2010 Olympics are in Canada, a country that prides itself on its progressive and unbiased values, morals, and laws in terms of gender equality, particularly as they are applied to public entities.

These women hoped the Canadian judicial system would see that excluding women ski jumpers while allowing male ski jumpers on publicly funded facilities was simply wrong.

In July, 2009, the BC Supreme Court judge finds that IOC is discriminating against women jumpers because of their gender, but stops short of ordering VANOC to hold an event for them. The women jumpers appealed to BC Court of Appeal, which came to the same ruling.

The jumpers then asked the Supreme Court of Canada to hear the case, but were turned down.



Last updated on January 9, 2010 by WSJ USA