The 2008 northern hemisphere season has been one of the best in Australia’s winter sports history.

While it is true that the total number of World Cup medals won by our athletes - 21 – fell short of the record of 23 set in 2003/04 and 2006/07, there were other reasons to be just as excited by the season as there were on those previous occasions.

The highlights of the year, of course, were the record-breaking fifth World Cup aerial skiing title achieved by Jacqui Cooper and the record-equalling third consecutive mogul skiing title collected by Dale Begg-Smith.

Cooper produced the best season of her career in 2007/08, winning five events and collecting an additional bronze medal on the way to her fifth title.

She ended the season with 24 World Cup victories, seven ahead of the next most prolific winner in the history of the sport.

No other aerial skier – man or woman – has won five titles, and only one other freestyler, American moguls champion Donna Weinbrecht, has achieved such an extraordinary feat.

Begg-Smith collected three gold and two silver medals during the season, taking his career tally of victories to 15.

By matching the achievement of French legend Edgar Grospiron in winning three consecutive World Cup titles – and also holding the Olympic crown – Begg-Smith has confirmed his status as one of the legends of the sport.

But the season has also been exceptional because of the other success that has come.

The 23 medals that Australia won in 2003/04 came from four athletes and just two disciplines. The same 2006/07 tally was amassed by six athletes across five disciplines, a growth in the depth of winter sports that was a strong endorsement of OWI programs.

The 2007/08 tally of 21 medals has built on the previous year, with eight athletes contributing from seven disciplines.

And that’s just the World Cup tally. If you include the achievements of Torah Bright on the world’s professional snowboard circuit, the level of success is even more impressive.

And when you look below the medal level – at the top tens and the personal bests – and also consider the athletes out of action through injury, then the scenario for winter sports in Australia has never been brighter.

Aerial skiing

Coming back from injury to join Cooper in the Flying Kangaroos, Lydia Lassila finished in second place on the World Cup standings for the fourth time in her career, collecting four podiums and two other top five placings from nine events.

It was the third time in the past six years that Australia had achieved the number one and number two world rankings at the end of the season.

Cooper and Lassila’s results, and Liz Gardner’s number eight ranking for the season, delivered the 2008 Nation’s Cup aerial skiing crown to Australia.

Alpine skiing

The 2007/08 season was the best and most consistent that Craig Branch has produced so far. with two top-30 World Cup placings and another five in the top 40.

The Perisher Blue 31-year-old skied to two personal best results in downhill and super G, collecting the first World Cup points of his career in downhill.

Unfortunately, team-mate Jono Brauer also another season bedeviled by injury, a persistent patella tendon problem ending his year despite some promising early form.

Mogul skiing

With Dale Begg-Smith as an inspiring role model, Ramone Cooper tackled the second World Cup season of his career, posting his first top ten when he placed eighth in Lake Placid, New York. A persistent patella tendon injury hampered his performance for much of the remainder of the season, and the Perisher Blue 19-year-old returned to Australia for surgery after the Japan leg of the circuit.

Ski cross

In ski cross, the sport that will make its Olympic debut at Vancouver 2010, Jenny Owens claimed her first podium, skiing to silver in Flaine, then followed that up four days later with bronze in Kreischberg. Katya Crema also made her debut appearances in the discipline, recording a best of 11th, in Sierra Nevada.

Ski halfpipe

In the relatively new World Cup sport of ski halfpipe, former mogul skier Davina Williams claimed bronze in Inawashiro, the second medal of her short career. She also finished fourth on the World Cup standings.

Snowboard cross

In snowboard cross, Alex Pullin also made his first podium, taking bronze in Gujo-Gifu, Japan, in his tenth World Cup event.

Snowboard halfpipe

With last year’s world number two Holly Crawford out of action, NSWIS rider Nathan Johnstone stepped up to the podium, riding to bronze in what was just his third World Cup event.

Torah Bright again was a leading light in the USA based snowboard industry series of events. Bright won the Nippon Open, the New Zealand Open and the World Superpipe Championships on the way to her second consecutive Global Open Series title. She was also second overall in the TTR series, and is clearly close to the best half pipe athlete in the world.

Snowboard alpine

Joh Shaw ended the 2008 World Cup five places above her previous best end of season ranking, with the highlight of her season making the first semi-final of her career. Shaw finished fourth in the parallel slalom in Bad Gastein, Austria., eclipsing her previous best PSL result by eight places and climbing to 14th place on the world rankings at that stage of the season.

Short track speed skating

Tatiana Borodulina became the first Australian woman to claim a short track medal, skating to bronze in 500m at the World Cup in Salt Lake City. She added a sixth placing in 1000m at the Utah event, and a fifth in the 500m in Quebec City. In other highlights, Lachlan Hay produced his first top ten result, finishing ninth in the 1500m in Torino,

Skeleton

The AIS/OWI skeleton team ended the season with two sliders in the top ten, for the first time since the program started. Emma Lincoln-Smith was the best performed of the three athletes, ending the season in eighth position after a string of top ten placings, the first of her career. Michelle Steele was two places further back at tenth on the World Cup points table, with a fifth placing her best result for the season. The third member of the team, Melissa Hoar, finished 14th on the World Cup standings, and also led the Australian performances at the World Championships, finishing in 12th place.

Figure skating

Dual Olympian Joanne Carter decided not to compete internationally after defending her Australian Championship title during August.  Joanne chose to pursue a show skating opportunity as a principal performer in Europe.

Cheltzie Lee made an excellent international debut, achieving a 5th place in the Junior Grand Prix event in Vienna, Austria, during September.  Lee then finished in 23rd place in a field of 56 skaters in her first appearance at the World Junior Figure Skating Championships in Sofia, Bulgaria during March.  Lee was in 19th place after the short program, making the final, but slipped back in the free program.

Curling

Australia’s curling team finished in sixth place in the World Curling Championships, remaining on track for a place in the 10-nation field at the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics.

The key results in detail

The medals

Aerial skiing
Jacqui Cooper
World Cup champion
5 gold, 1 silver

Lydia Lassila
World Cup runner-up
3 silver, 1 bronze

Mogul skiing
World Cup champion
Dale Begg-Smith
3 gold, 2 silver

Ski cross
Jenny Owens
1 silver, 1 bronze

Ski halfpipe
Davina Williams
1 bronze

Snowboard cross
Alex Pullin
1 bronze

Snowboard halfpipe
Nathan Johnstone
1 bronze

Short track speed skating
Tatiana Borodulina
1 bronze

Snowboard halfpipe pro series
Torah Bright
Overall Global Open series champion
3 gold, 2 silver

PBs and top ten individual performances

Alpine skiing
Craig Branch
First top 30 (PB 27th downhill)

Mogul skiing
Ramone Cooper
First top ten (8th)

Ski cross
Katya Crema
PB 11th

Snowboard alpine
Joh Shaw
PB 4th (PSL)

Skeleton
Emma Lincoln-Smith
PB 7th

Short track speed skating
Lachlan Hay
PB 9th