Lydia Ierodiaconou
Encyclopedia
Lydia Lassila (born 17 January 1982, in Melbourne
) is an Australian Olympic freestyle skier and gold medalist who competed in the 2002 Winter Olympic Games in Salt Lake City, the 2006 Winter Olympic Games in Turin and the 2010 Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver
.
On 20 October 2010, Lydia was awarded by the Australian Sporting Hall of Fame the prestigious The Don award, recognising her ability to inspire as well as her achievements during 2010.
and Italian
descent, with her mother an Italian and her father a Cypriot.
Lassila completed her primary schooling at Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception Primary School in Sunshine
, and completed her secondary education at Methodist Ladies' College
and Westbourne Grammar School
. She completed a bachelor's degree
in Applied Science
(Human Movement
) at RMIT University
. She is married to Lauri Lassila, a Finnish
former professional freestyle skier, whose career included placing 2nd in moguls
at the FIS Freestyle Skiing World Championships
in 1999. She gave birth to a boy on 8 May 2011.
Lassila is sponsored by Acer and appears in television endorsements for them. She is also sponsored by Suzuki, Cadbury and Bolle.
(ACL) and underwent a radical knee reconstruction whereby a cadaver Achilles tendon
was grafted into her knee as a replacement for her damaged ACL. This would allow for a faster recovery and a swift return to the slopes in time for the start of the 2006 Winter Olympic Games in February.
During the second qualifying round of the Torino aerials competition, her knee collapsed on impact after she attempted to land a difficult jump, re-rupturing her ACL and forcing her to withdraw. However, taking inspiration from compatriots and teammates Jacqui Cooper
and Alisa Camplin
, both of whom have suffered similar knee injuries, the then 24-year-old vowed to return to the sport when she recovered.
Lassila made her comeback to World Cup competition 16 months later in China in December 2007, collecting a silver medal in her first event.
She ended the 2007/08 season ranked second on the World Cup standings, and then went on to win her first World Cup title in the following 2008/09 season.
in Vancouver
, Lassila won gold in the aerials, getting Australia's second gold medal for the games after snowboarder Torah Bright
won gold in the halfpipe, incidentally also at Cypress Mountain
. This medal was also the second gold medal for an Australian in the aerials at all Winter Olympic Games, after Alisa Camplin
in 2002. As world number one there was a lot of pressure and hype from the Australian press for Lassila to do well. She was in second position after the first jump of the final, before posting the highest scoring second round jump. The leader after the first jump, Xu Mengtao
, had the last jump, but scored more than 25 points below Lassila's second jump to fall down the rankings into sixth, due to a failed landing. Lassila had a combined score of 214.74, beating second placed Li Nina
on 207.23 points. Australian team-mates Jacqui Cooper
and Elizabeth Gardner
finished 5th with 194.29 and 12th with 86.70 respectively.
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
) is an Australian Olympic freestyle skier and gold medalist who competed in the 2002 Winter Olympic Games in Salt Lake City, the 2006 Winter Olympic Games in Turin and the 2010 Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
.
On 20 October 2010, Lydia was awarded by the Australian Sporting Hall of Fame the prestigious The Don award, recognising her ability to inspire as well as her achievements during 2010.
Personal life
She is of Greek-CypriotCyprus
Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
and Italian
Italian people
The Italian people are an ethnic group that share a common Italian culture, ancestry and speak the Italian language as a mother tongue. Within Italy, Italians are defined by citizenship, regardless of ancestry or country of residence , and are distinguished from people...
descent, with her mother an Italian and her father a Cypriot.
Lassila completed her primary schooling at Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception Primary School in Sunshine
Sunshine, Victoria
Sunshine is a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia lying 11 to 13 km west of the CBD. Its Local Government Area is the City of Brimbank. At the 2006 Census, Sunshine had a population of 8,070.-History:...
, and completed her secondary education at Methodist Ladies' College
Methodist Ladies' College, Melbourne
Methodist Ladies' College is an independent, non-selective, day and boarding school for girls, located in Kew, an eastern suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia...
and Westbourne Grammar School
Westbourne Grammar School
Westbourne Grammar School is an independent and non-denominational Christian co-educational day school in Truganina, in the western suburbs of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia....
. She completed a bachelor's degree
Bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree is usually an academic degree awarded for an undergraduate course or major that generally lasts for three or four years, but can range anywhere from two to six years depending on the region of the world...
in Applied Science
Applied science
Applied science is the application of scientific knowledge transferred into a physical environment. Examples include testing a theoretical model through the use of formal science or solving a practical problem through the use of natural science....
(Human Movement
Sports science
Sport science is a discipline that studies the application of scientific principles and techniques with the aim of improving sporting performance...
) at RMIT University
RMIT University
RMIT University is an Australian public university located in Melbourne, Victoria. It has two branches, referred to as RMIT University in Australia and RMIT International University in Vietnam....
. She is married to Lauri Lassila, a Finnish
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
former professional freestyle skier, whose career included placing 2nd in moguls
Mogul skiing
Mogul skiing is a type of freestyle skiing where skiers ski terrain characterized by a large number of different bumps, or moguls.-Moguls:...
at the FIS Freestyle Skiing World Championships
FIS Freestyle World Ski Championships
The FIS Freestyle World Ski Championships is the world championship organized by the FIS for Freestyle Skiing. It was first organized in 1986 and is now held every odd year. Currently, the events included in the world championships are Moguls, Dual Moguls, Aerials, Ski cross, Slopestyle and Half-pipe...
in 1999. She gave birth to a boy on 8 May 2011.
Lassila is sponsored by Acer and appears in television endorsements for them. She is also sponsored by Suzuki, Cadbury and Bolle.
Career
In June 2005, she suffered a ruptured Anterior Cruciate LigamentAnterior cruciate ligament
The anterior cruciate ligament is a cruciate ligament which is one of the four major ligaments of the human knee. In the quadruped stifle , based on its anatomical position, it is referred to as the cranial cruciate ligament.The ACL originates from deep within the notch of the distal femur...
(ACL) and underwent a radical knee reconstruction whereby a cadaver Achilles tendon
Achilles tendon
The Achilles tendon , also known as the calcaneal tendon or the tendo calcaneus, is a tendon of the posterior leg. It serves to attach the plantaris, gastrocnemius and soleus muscles to the calcaneus bone.- Anatomy :The Achilles is the tendonous extension of 3 muscles in the lower leg:...
was grafted into her knee as a replacement for her damaged ACL. This would allow for a faster recovery and a swift return to the slopes in time for the start of the 2006 Winter Olympic Games in February.
During the second qualifying round of the Torino aerials competition, her knee collapsed on impact after she attempted to land a difficult jump, re-rupturing her ACL and forcing her to withdraw. However, taking inspiration from compatriots and teammates Jacqui Cooper
Jacqui Cooper
Jacqui Cooper is an Australian freestyle skier and motivational speaker.Cooper has been participating in aerial skiing since she was 16, and has been in the Australian team for 13 years. She has had many injuries, including a shattered knee and a broken back.She competed at the 1994 Winter...
and Alisa Camplin
Alisa Camplin
Alisa Camplin OAM is an Australian aerial skier who won gold at the 2002 Winter Olympics, the second ever winter olympic gold medal for Australia. At the 2006 Winter Olympics, Camplin finished third, a bronze medal...
, both of whom have suffered similar knee injuries, the then 24-year-old vowed to return to the sport when she recovered.
Lassila made her comeback to World Cup competition 16 months later in China in December 2007, collecting a silver medal in her first event.
She ended the 2007/08 season ranked second on the World Cup standings, and then went on to win her first World Cup title in the following 2008/09 season.
2010 Winter Olympics
At the 2010 Winter Olympics2010 Winter Olympics
The 2010 Winter Olympics, officially the XXI Olympic Winter Games or the 21st Winter Olympics, were a major international multi-sport event held from February 12–28, 2010, in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, with some events held in the suburbs of Richmond, West Vancouver and the University...
in Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
, Lassila won gold in the aerials, getting Australia's second gold medal for the games after snowboarder Torah Bright
Torah Bright
Torah Jane Bright is an Australian snowboarder. She turned pro at age 14 and finished fifth in snowboarding at the 2006 Winter Olympics in Torino, Italy. She lives and trains in the area of Salt Lake City, Utah, USA...
won gold in the halfpipe, incidentally also at Cypress Mountain
Cypress Mountain
- External links :* *...
. This medal was also the second gold medal for an Australian in the aerials at all Winter Olympic Games, after Alisa Camplin
Alisa Camplin
Alisa Camplin OAM is an Australian aerial skier who won gold at the 2002 Winter Olympics, the second ever winter olympic gold medal for Australia. At the 2006 Winter Olympics, Camplin finished third, a bronze medal...
in 2002. As world number one there was a lot of pressure and hype from the Australian press for Lassila to do well. She was in second position after the first jump of the final, before posting the highest scoring second round jump. The leader after the first jump, Xu Mengtao
Xu Mengtao
Xu Mengtao is an Chinese aerial skier. She has two World Cup victories. She competed at the 2010 Winter Olympics, where she qualified eighth, and had the highest score after the first jump in the finals, however she crashed on her second jump and ended up in sixth place.Xu captured a silver medal...
, had the last jump, but scored more than 25 points below Lassila's second jump to fall down the rankings into sixth, due to a failed landing. Lassila had a combined score of 214.74, beating second placed Li Nina
Li Nina
Li Nina is a Chinese aerial skier who won silver at both the 2006 and 2010 Winter Olympics. She placed 5th at the 2002 Winter Olympics, and has won the last three World Championships in aerials.Her nickname is 'Snow Princess'.-External links:...
on 207.23 points. Australian team-mates Jacqui Cooper
Jacqui Cooper
Jacqui Cooper is an Australian freestyle skier and motivational speaker.Cooper has been participating in aerial skiing since she was 16, and has been in the Australian team for 13 years. She has had many injuries, including a shattered knee and a broken back.She competed at the 1994 Winter...
and Elizabeth Gardner
Elizabeth Gardner
Elizabeth Gardner is an Australian freestyle skier-Professional career:Gardner made her professional debut on 8 September 2001 at the Mount Buller women's aerial event. Since her debut, she has competed the Europa, Nor-Am, and World Cup...
finished 5th with 194.29 and 12th with 86.70 respectively.