Australia’s Vancouver 2010 Olympic medal hopes have received a major boost with the decision of Mt Buller to host a month long aerial skiing camp in August.

The Victorian resort will make available its renowned World Cup jump site to provide invaluable on-snow training for reigning World Cup champion Lydia Lassila and her AIS team-mates Liz Gardner and Bree Munro, with the first camp kicking off on August 2.

The AIS/OWI team members have been water jump training in Switzerland for the past two months, but the opportunity to train on snow at a home-based world class facility in the middle of the northern hemisphere summer  – while all their rivals are restricted to water jump training – will provide a major edge for the Australians. 

Lassila, who won her first World Cup title last season, plans to take an armory of triple somersaults to the Vancouver Games, so the extra four weeks on snow comes at a critical time in the process of perfecting her new routine.

Gardner is also training several triple jumps in the lead-up to the Games.

Australia’s most successful World Cup and World Championship skier, Jacqui Cooper, will also be taking part in the camp, but has opted to concentrate on polishing her skiing skills before leaving Australia in mid-August for water jump training in North America or Europe.

If she makes the Vancouver 2010 team, the five-time World Cup champion will become the first Australian woman to be named in five Olympic teams, summer or winter.

Ian Chesterman, the Chef de Mission of Australia’s Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games team, welcomed the Buller Ski Lifts commitment.

“The value of this training opportunity can’t be emphasised enough,” Chesterman said.

“Not only will our athletes be getting four weeks on snow without having to compete for jumping time with their rival aerialists, they will also be training on their home mountain in a familiar environment.”

“I’m sure we will see the benefits of this training block when the pre-Games World Cup events get underway in December.”

Four members of the Victorian Institute of Sport and Mt Buller-sponsored Aerial Skiing Development Team - Danni Scott, Laura Peel, Jessica McIlwraith and Kendle Richards - will train alongside the Shadow Olympic Team members on the Chamois jump site.

The Mt Buller commitment to the aerial skiing camp – which also includes the provision of accommodation, snowmaking, and lifting – is not the only contribution that the resort is making to Australia’s Vancouver 2010 campaign.

The AIS/OWI Ski Cross Team – which includes World Cup medallist Jenny Owens, Mt Buller local Katya Crema and NSW skier Scott Kneller – will also be training on the mountain later this month.

And world number ten alpine snowboarder and AIS scholarship athlete, Joh Shaw, will be utilising the Buller slopes for weekly training throughout the Australian season.

Shaw, a Torino 2006 Olympian, rode to two fourth place World Cup results last season and is also in the Vancouver 2010 medal mix.

Finally, Australia’s Olympic mogul skiing aspirants will be competing at the Victorian resort when it hosts the 21st Abom Mogul Challenge on August 29.