John Ball shifts to Ski Association

Ruapehu Bulletin, Volume 7, Issue 337, 29 May 1990, Page 7 (Supplement)

John Ball shifts to Ski Association

Turoa Ski School Director John Ball has been appointed alpine director of New Zealand Ski Association.

After months of discussion and conjecture the association has appointed a new alpine director to oversee the future development of skiing in New Zealand. John Ball, 42, will take up the newly-cre-ated position immediately. Although his appointment is still to be officially announced, Ball confirmed to the association earlier this week that he will accept the position, made possible as a result of support from New Zealand skiing's greatest benefactor, Mitsubishi Motors. Canadian-born Ball has been associated with skiing in this eountry since 1970 when he first worked as a ski instructor at the Chateau Ski School, a position he took as a summer vacation job while completing a double degree at Ontario's McMaster University. Doing what comes natural for ski instructors, Ball began in 1971 to spend six months of the year in North America and the remaining six months in New Zealand, the first two years as a ski instructor and then for an eight year period

from 1973 as ski school director of the Chateau Ski School. In 1981 he took up the position of ski school director at the newly-established Turoa skifield and in " 1987 was appointed director of skiing with control over both the ski school and the race department. During a fair portion of that time he also worked at a number of North American resorts in a variety of positions, including several as head coach of various teams. Between 1984 and 1986 he conducted training camps for New Zealand teams at Squaw Valley, California. In 1988 Ball was responsible for the overall organizing and executing of an outstanding. FIS Ski series at Turoa, and was at the same time instrumental in trying to stage a World Cup at Turoa, a dream he was unable to realize when New Zealand Ski Fields directors pulled the plug on the idea because of financial restraints. Now married and holding New Zealand citizenship, he is permanently based in Ohakune, however,

there is little doubt that in the next few months he will be spending more and more time inr Wellington working beside ski council executive officer Miles Davidson. Ball says he is looking forward to the challenges that the position will throw at him, but is confident they will all be met and accom-

plished. He says New Zealand skiing badly needs direction and he hopes to quickly formulate a programme that will put it on the right road. "I know the task ahead of me will be far from easy, but I have little doubt that the assistance being offered to skiing in this eountry by Mitsubishi Mo-

tors will go a long way to helping me achieve what I am about to set out and do." Although he will take up his job this week, he won't be immediately abandoning Turoa altogether. He intends to act as a consultant to Turoa until all of this year's programmes are in place.