Zali Steggall
Encyclopedia
Zali Steggall is Australia
's most internationally successful alpine skier
, winning a bronze medal in slalom at the 1998 Winter Olympics
in Nagano, and a World Championship gold medal in 1999. Steggall's long Olympic career extended from Albertville
in 1992 to Salt Lake City in 2002. Later in her career Steggall was unable to fully adapt to the new slalom skis.
, she and her family lived in France
from 1978 until 1988, and she started ski racing while living there, at the ski resort of Morzine
in the French Alps
. Her parents had intended to stay for only 18 months, but they liked the lifestyle so much that they stayed. She came from a sporting family; her grandfather played ten Tests for Australia in rugby union
. She and elder brother Zeke
grew up on the snow. Steggall won a European age championship at the age of 10, improved to be a member of the French junior skiing team at the age of 14. Steggall was educated in Sydney at the Queenwood School for Girls
following the family's return to Australia.
Despite moving back to Australia, the Steggall siblings regularly travelled to the northern hemisphere to train. She was also sent overseas by the Australian Ski Institute to train under Austrian alpine coach Helmut Spiegl.
Steggall was selected to make her Olympic debut in Albertville in 1992, at the age of 18. She came 23rd out of 44 entries in the giant slalom event, and failed to finish the slalom or the combined event. At the 1994 Olympics in Lillehammer
, the size of the field was scaled back. Steggall came 22nd out of 28 athletes in the slalom and 24th and last in the giant slalom. She withdrew from the super-G and was unplaced in the overall standings.
In December 1995, Steggall broke into the top 10 in a World Cup event for the first time, placing 10th in the slalom event at Sankt Anton
. In January 1996, Steggall came fourth at the World Championships in Sestriere
, Italy
, missing bronze by just 0.04 s.
Steggall came into the 1998 Olympics in Nagano as one of the medal favourites. Three months earlier, she had become the first Australian woman to win a World Cup event in alpine skiing, after winning the slalom event at Park City
, Utah
. She posted the fastest time in both of her runs to win by 0.76 s. She then came fifth, sixth and tenth in the next three World Cup events to be ranked sixth in the world. Steggall then won a Europa Cup event at Piancavallo
. She won Australia's first individual Olympic medal with a bronze in slalom skiing. Her time of 1 m 32.67 s was only 0.27 s behind the winning time. She took 45.96 s on her first run and 46.71 s on the second. In December, Steggall placed second in a World Cup event at Mammoth Mountain
, missing the gold medal by 0.01 s to Anja Pärson
. She had earlier placed seventh at Park City.
Steggall's success prompted the Australian Olympic Committee
to expand the Australian Ski Institute into the Olympic Winter Institute of Australia
. It was given a million-dollar annual budget and for the first time, Australia had a federal government-funded full-time training program to accompany the Australian Institute of Sport
. It operated in six sports and supported 37 athletes and resulted in an immediate upturn in results.
In 1999, she won the slalom at the World Championships held in Vail, Colorado
, in the United States. That was her last podium finish at global level. In February 2000, she came 10th at Aare, the last top-10 result in her career.
Her career ended on a bad note at the 2002 Winter Olympics
in Salt Lake City. She failed to complete her first run and was eliminated.
Steggall retired in 2002 after the Olympics, and became a mother in 2003. She now lives in Sydney
and successfully trained to become a barrister
. Steggall married David Cameron in September 1999. Cameron represented Australia at the 1996 Summer Olympics
in the single sculls rowing. However, the pair broke up in mid-2007. Steggall said that Cameron had left her for another woman. In 2008, she announced that she was engaged to marketing executive Tim Irving, 11 years her senior, and that they would marry later in the year. She said that she had no plans to have further children.
Her other sporting interests included figure skating
and windsurfing
.
Skiing in Australia
Skiing in Australia takes place in the high country of the states of New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania, as well as in the Australian Capital Territory, during the Southern Hemisphere winter....
's most internationally successful alpine skier
Alpine skiing
Alpine skiing is the sport of sliding down snow-covered hills on skis with fixed-heel bindings. Alpine skiing can be contrasted with skiing using free-heel bindings: Ski mountaineering and nordic skiing – such as cross-country; ski jumping; and Telemark. In competitive alpine skiing races four...
, winning a bronze medal in slalom at the 1998 Winter Olympics
1998 Winter Olympics
The 1998 Winter Olympics, officially the XVIII Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event celebrated from 7 to 22 February 1998 in Nagano, Japan. Seventy-two nations and 2,176 participans contested in seven sports and 72 events at 15 venues. The games saw the introduction of Women's ice...
in Nagano, and a World Championship gold medal in 1999. Steggall's long Olympic career extended from Albertville
Albertville
Albertville is a commune in the Savoie department in the Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France.The town is best known for hosting the 1992 Winter Olympics.-Geography:...
in 1992 to Salt Lake City in 2002. Later in her career Steggall was unable to fully adapt to the new slalom skis.
Biography
Born in Manly, New South WalesManly, New South Wales
Manly is a suburb of northern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Manly is located 17 kilometres north-east of the Sydney central business district and is the administrative centre of the local government area of Manly Council, in the Northern Beaches region.-History:Manly was named...
, she and her family lived in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
from 1978 until 1988, and she started ski racing while living there, at the ski resort of Morzine
Morzine
Morzine is a commune in the Haute-Savoie department in the Rhône-Alpes region in eastern France with panoramic mountain views, modern ski facilities and hotels and restaurants. The ski resort of Avoriaz is located on the territory of the commune...
in the French Alps
French Alps
The French Alps are those portions of the Alps mountain range which stand within France, located in the Rhône-Alpes and Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur regions....
. Her parents had intended to stay for only 18 months, but they liked the lifestyle so much that they stayed. She came from a sporting family; her grandfather played ten Tests for Australia in rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
. She and elder brother Zeke
Zeke Steggall
Zeke Steggall is a former Australian Olympic snowboarder. He competed at the 1998 and 2002 Winter Olympics. His sister Zali Steggall was an alpine skier and Australia's first individual Olympic medalist...
grew up on the snow. Steggall won a European age championship at the age of 10, improved to be a member of the French junior skiing team at the age of 14. Steggall was educated in Sydney at the Queenwood School for Girls
Queenwood School for Girls
Queenwood School for Girls is an independent, non-denominational, Christian day school, located in the suburb of Mosman, on the Lower North Shore of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia....
following the family's return to Australia.
Despite moving back to Australia, the Steggall siblings regularly travelled to the northern hemisphere to train. She was also sent overseas by the Australian Ski Institute to train under Austrian alpine coach Helmut Spiegl.
Steggall was selected to make her Olympic debut in Albertville in 1992, at the age of 18. She came 23rd out of 44 entries in the giant slalom event, and failed to finish the slalom or the combined event. At the 1994 Olympics in Lillehammer
Lillehammer
is a town and municipality in Oppland county, Norway, globally known for hosting the 1994 Winter Olympics. It is part of the traditional region of Gudbrandsdal. The administrative centre of the municipality is the town of Lillehammer. As of May 2011, the population of the town of Lillehammer was...
, the size of the field was scaled back. Steggall came 22nd out of 28 athletes in the slalom and 24th and last in the giant slalom. She withdrew from the super-G and was unplaced in the overall standings.
In December 1995, Steggall broke into the top 10 in a World Cup event for the first time, placing 10th in the slalom event at Sankt Anton
Sankt Anton
Sankt Anton may refer to the following places in Austria:*Sankt Anton am Arlberg, a municipality and ski resort in Tyrol*Sankt Anton im Montafon, a municipality in Vorarlberg*Sankt Anton an der Jeßnitz, a municipality in Lower Austria...
. In January 1996, Steggall came fourth at the World Championships in Sestriere
Sestriere
Sestriere is an alpine village in Italy, a comune of the Province of Turin. It is from the French border. Its name derives from Latin: ad petram sistrariam, that is at sixty Roman miles from Turin....
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, missing bronze by just 0.04 s.
Steggall came into the 1998 Olympics in Nagano as one of the medal favourites. Three months earlier, she had become the first Australian woman to win a World Cup event in alpine skiing, after winning the slalom event at Park City
Park City, Utah
Park City is a town in Summit and Wasatch counties in the U.S. state of Utah. It is considered to be part of the Wasatch Back. The city is southeast of downtown Salt Lake City and from Salt Lake City's east edge of Sugar House along Interstate 80. The population was 7,558 at the 2010 census...
, Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
. She posted the fastest time in both of her runs to win by 0.76 s. She then came fifth, sixth and tenth in the next three World Cup events to be ranked sixth in the world. Steggall then won a Europa Cup event at Piancavallo
Piancavallo
Piancavallo is a ski resort in the Dolomites of northeast Italy. It is a frazione of the comune of Aviano, in the province of Pordenone in Friuli-Venezia Giulia.- Geography:...
. She won Australia's first individual Olympic medal with a bronze in slalom skiing. Her time of 1 m 32.67 s was only 0.27 s behind the winning time. She took 45.96 s on her first run and 46.71 s on the second. In December, Steggall placed second in a World Cup event at Mammoth Mountain
Mammoth Mountain
Mammoth Mountain is a lava dome complex west of the town of Mammoth Lakes, California in the Inyo National Forest of Madera County and Mono County. It is home to a large ski area on the Mono County side....
, missing the gold medal by 0.01 s to Anja Pärson
Anja Pärson
Anja Sofia Tess Pärson is a Swedish-Sámi alpine skier, the winner of seven World Championships gold medals and two Overall Alpine Skiing World Cup titles. She has won a total of 42 World cup races.-Biography:...
. She had earlier placed seventh at Park City.
Steggall's success prompted the Australian Olympic Committee
Australian Olympic Committee
The Australian Olympic Committee is the National Olympic Committee in Australia for the Olympic Games movement. It is a non-profit organisation that selects teams, and raises funds to send Australian competitors to Olympic events organised by the International Olympic Committee .-Background:The...
to expand the Australian Ski Institute into the Olympic Winter Institute of Australia
Olympic Winter Institute of Australia
The Olympic Winter Institute of Australia is a federal government-funded elite sports training institution of Australia for the purpose of training athletes and coaches in sports involved in the Winter Olympics....
. It was given a million-dollar annual budget and for the first time, Australia had a federal government-funded full-time training program to accompany the Australian Institute of Sport
Australian Institute of Sport
The Australian Institute of Sport is a sports training institution in Australia with world class facilities and support services. The Institute's headquarters is situated in Canberra, the capital city of Australia. The 66.0 hectare site campus is in the northern suburb of Bruce, but some of the...
. It operated in six sports and supported 37 athletes and resulted in an immediate upturn in results.
In 1999, she won the slalom at the World Championships held in Vail, Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
, in the United States. That was her last podium finish at global level. In February 2000, she came 10th at Aare, the last top-10 result in her career.
Her career ended on a bad note at the 2002 Winter Olympics
2002 Winter Olympics
The 2002 Winter Olympics, officially the XIX Olympic Winter Games, were a winter multi-sport event that was celebrated in February 2002 in and around Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. Approximately 2,400 athletes from 77 nations participated in 78 events in fifteen disciplines, held throughout...
in Salt Lake City. She failed to complete her first run and was eliminated.
Steggall retired in 2002 after the Olympics, and became a mother in 2003. She now lives in Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
and successfully trained to become a barrister
Barrister
A barrister is a member of one of the two classes of lawyer found in many common law jurisdictions with split legal professions. Barristers specialise in courtroom advocacy, drafting legal pleadings and giving expert legal opinions...
. Steggall married David Cameron in September 1999. Cameron represented Australia at the 1996 Summer Olympics
1996 Summer Olympics
The 1996 Summer Olympics of Atlanta, officially known as the Games of the XXVI Olympiad and unofficially known as the Centennial Olympics, was an international multi-sport event which was celebrated in 1996 in Atlanta, Georgia, United States....
in the single sculls rowing. However, the pair broke up in mid-2007. Steggall said that Cameron had left her for another woman. In 2008, she announced that she was engaged to marketing executive Tim Irving, 11 years her senior, and that they would marry later in the year. She said that she had no plans to have further children.
Her other sporting interests included figure skating
Figure skating
Figure skating is an Olympic sport in which individuals, pairs, or groups perform spins, jumps, footwork and other intricate and challenging moves on ice skates. Figure skaters compete at various levels from beginner up to the Olympic level , and at local, national, and international competitions...
and windsurfing
Windsurfing
Windsurfing or sailboarding is a surface water sport that combines elements of surfing and sailing. It consists of a board usually two to four metres long, powered by the orthogonal effect of the wind on a sail. The rig is connected to the board by a free-rotating universal joint and comprises a...
.