Alpine skier Peters named Athlete of the Year

Double world champion sit-skier Corey Peters was awarded the Snow Sport New Zealand Overall Athlete of the Year at the Lake Wanaka Centre on Saturday (10 October), in recognition of a stunning 2014-15 season.

Peters, whose sporting career continues to go from strength to strength, was handed the award for the second year running having won in 2014 for his silver medal performance at the Sochi 2014 Paralympic Winter Games.

In March 2015 he won world titles in downhill and super-G as well as a silver medal in giant slalom at the IPC Alpine Skiing World Championships in Panorama, Canada.

The Worlds were the culmination of a highly successful Northern Hemisphere season for Peters which saw him win a World Cup silver medal and finish third overall in the rankings in February 2015. Other results included bronze in slalom, silver in giant slalom at races in Aspen, USA; bronze in slalom, silver in giant slalom at IPC Alpine Skiing North America Cup races; bronze and gold in downhill and gold in super-G at the US National Championships.

Into the 2015 national season Peters has already won the giant slalom at the IPC Snow Sports New Zealand National Championships and placed second in the slalom at the IPCAS Southern Hemisphere Cup held as part of the Audi quattro Winter Games New Zealand.

Peters results are made all the more impressive given the fact that he only took up sit-skiing in 2011. The former Taranaki age group and development squad rugby representative’s life was turned upside down in September 2009 when he sustained a crushed spinal cord at a motocross event, leaving him paralysed.

This year’s awards encompassed a 12-month timeframe including the 2014-15 Northern Hemisphere season and the 2015 Southern Hemisphere season.

It has been a big year for Snow Sports New Zealand with lots of successes for national athletes of all levels from development through to the elite athletes on the international stage. New Zealand athletes performed well at pinnacle events including World Cups, World Championships, The Freeride World Tour and X Games.

Attendees of this year’s Snow Sports New Zealand Annual Awards were entertained by a guest panel who gave the audience an insight into their ‘Life in Snow Sports’. The panel was interviewed by Snow Sports New Zealand Head Park and Pipe Coach Tom Willmott and included professional snowboarder Will Jackways, Winter Olympic team physio Ginny Rutledge, Paralympic gold medallist Adam Hall, Olympian and Chef de Mission to the 2016 Youth Olympic Winter Games Jesse Teat, and freeski pioneer and founder of clothing company Mons Royale, Hamish Acland.

Full list of winners

• Instructor of the Year – Campbell Mason (Cardrona Alpine Resort)

• Men’s Masters Ski Racing Champion – Perry Coulter (Queenstown)

• Women’s Masters Ski Racing Champion – Alison Duder (Queenstown)

• Coach of the Year – Tom Willmott (Wanaka)

• Breakthrough Season – Jamie Prebble (Christchurch)

• Cross-Country Athlete of the Year – Andy Pohl (Wanaka)

• Alpine Ski Racer Athlete of the Year – Willis Feasey (Twizel)

• Adaptive Snow Sports Athlete of the Year – Corey Peters (New Plymouth)

• Freeride Athlete of the Year – Sam Smoothy (Cromwell)

• Snowboarder of the Year - Christy Prior (Kaukapakapa)

• Freeskier of the Year – Janina Kuzma (Wanaka)

• Overall Athlete of the Year – Corey Peters (New Plymouth)