Scott kneller

Cap

Scott Kneller in the FIS slalom at Thredbo. Photo: Chris Hassel www.hotshots.net.au

He may have won the Top to Bottom at Thredbo, been named National Junior Champion in Grand Slalom and Slalom, but Scott Kneller has his sights set on something quite different.

The Jindabyne 19 year old has moved into skier cross and his first big race in the discipline will be at Hotham this Saturday in the Continental Cup.

Skier cross races have five skiers out of the gate together, handling jumps as well and in 2010 it will be a winter Olympic sport.

Scott said: "I was keen for a change and skier cross gives you a wider variety."

At the moment he said he is the only guy in Australia doing skier cross although there are three girls involved.

Scott's aim is to be part of the Olympic team that sets off for Vancouver in 2010 and compete in the new discipline of skier cross.

But in the meantime, with no formal development programme established, Scott says that he must get as many podiums as possible in skier cross races.

Scott's recent win at Thredbo in the National Junior Championships was part of several days of racing. A field of international alpine racers from Sweden, Austria, Hungary, Great Britain, Czechoslovakia, Israel, Greece, Italy and the USA competed in the week long Australian National and National Junior Championships.

Fredrik Nordh, a World Cup racer from Sweden finished first in three of the men's races with a Did Not Finish in the fourth.

Christian Geiger from Victoria achieved the highest result for an Australian in the National Championships with a second in the Slalom and a third in the Grand Slalom.

Jenny Owens, a former Alpine Olympian, raced for the first time in a number of years as she honed the skills needed for a successful campaign to ensure Skier Cross selection to the 2010 Vancouver Olympics. Jenny won the Ladies Grand Slalom and a second year junior, Emily Bamford, finished second in the Slalom and consequently was the highest ranked Australian.

In the National Junior Championships the highest ranked Australian skiers were Scott Kneller from TSRC in the Grand Slalom and Nick Karlowatz from Perisher Blue in the Slalom while in the Ladies, Lavinia Chrystal (TSRC) achieved the highest ranking in the Grand Slalom and Emily Bamford in the Slalom.

A number of the National Alpine Committee members attended the races and were impressed by the Mens' and Ladies' National Alpine Development team athletes as well as the notable performances of first year athletes including Toni Hodkinson (TSRC), Elyse Timoshenko (Buller), Sam Robertson (TSRC) and Jackson Coull (Buller).