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Women's Ski Jumping USA records

 Collection
Identifier: ACCN 2679

Scope and Contents

The Women's Ski Jumping USA records consist of correspondence, fundraising materials, posters, stickers and other promotional materials.

Dates

  • 2006-2011

Creator

Language of Materials

Collection materials are in English.

Conditions Governing Access

Twenty-four hour advanced notice encouraged. Materials must be used on-site. Access to parts of this collection may be restricted under provisions of state or federal law.

Conditions Governing Use

The library does not claim to control copyright for all materials in the collection. An individual depicted in a reproduction has privacy rights as outlined in Title 45 CFR, part 46 (Protection of Human Subjects). For further information, please review the J. Willard Marriott Library’s Use Agreement and Reproduction Request forms.

Historical Note

Women's Ski Jumping USA runs the U.S. women's ski jumping program and is the primary support organization for the U.S. national team, officially called the Visa Women's Ski Jumping Team. The organization administers and finances the team's coaching, travel, training, equipment, and a junior development program.

WSJ-USA is a 501c3 non-profit organization incorporated in 2003 in Park City, Utah. It was created to support the rising number of elite U.S. women ski jumpers who needed financial support and strong leadership to get them into the international fold and on sport's biggest stage, the Olympic Games.

For 10 years, female ski jumpers were continually denied inclusion in the Games despite pushing their sport through the system and greatly increasing participation.

Feeling as if they had exhausted every avenue, Americans Lindsey Van, Jessica Jerome, and retired jumper Karla Keck, risked their careers and teamed up with 12 women jumpers from five countries to sue the Vancouver Organizing Committee (VANOC) in 2008 for their right to compete in the 2010 Olympic Winter Games. The lawyers for the jumpers, Ross Clark and Jeff Horswill of Davis LLP, took on the case pro bono.

The historic human rights legal battle resulted in the British Columbia Supreme Court declaring in 2009 that the IOC exhibited gender discrimination by excluding women's ski jumping from the Vancouver Games, but stopped short of forcing VANOC and the IOC to hold an event for women.

Ironically, before the Winter Games in 2010, Lindsey Van held the K95 Vancouver hill record of 105.5 meters, for both men and women. That distance would have earned her a podium spot in the men's competition in the Vancouver Games.

(This historical note was taken from the Women's Ski Jumping USA webiste.)

Extent

2.75 Linear Feet (2 boxes)

Abstract

The Women's Ski Jumping USA records (2006-2011) consist of correspondence, fundraising materials, posters, stickers and other promotional materials. WSJ-USA is a non-profit organization incorporated in 2003 in Park City, Utah. It was created to support the rising number of elite U.S. women ski jumpers who needed financial support and strong leadership to get them into the international fold and on sport's biggest stage, the Olympic Games.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Donated by Victor Method in 2012.

Related Materials

Forms part of the Utah Ski Archive.

Forms part of the Aileen H. Clyde 20th Century Women's Legacy Archives.

Separated Materials

Photographs were transferred to the Multimedia Division of Special Collections.

Processing Information

Title
Inventory of the Women's Ski Jumping USA records
Status
Completed
Author
Finding aid created by Betsey Welland.
Date
2014 (last modified: 2018)
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
Undetermined
Script of description
Code for undetermined script
Language of description note
Finding aid written in English.

Repository Details

Part of the J. Willard Marriott Library Special Collections Repository

Contact:
295 South 1500 East
Salt Lake City Utah 84112 United States
801-581-8863