Australia at the 2002 Winter Olympics
Encyclopedia
Australia
competed at the 2002 Winter Olympics
in Salt Lake City
, United States
, winning two gold medal
s the nation's best performance at the Winter Games
prior to Vancouver
.
in the 1000m short track speed skating
. Well off the pace of the medal favourites, Bradbury was positioned at the rear in the semifinal, only to see his competitors crash into each other, allowing him through to the final. Again well off the pace in the final all four other competitors crashed out at the final corner, leaving a shocked Bradbury to take the gold medal. Bradbury was also part of the 1994 relay team that won Australia's first Winter Olympics medal.
Alisa Camplin
, who hadn't won a world cup event before and was so nervous she didn't eat dinner the night before the final, won the second gold, in aerial skiing
. Jacqui Cooper
was previously a favourite, but she injured herself before the competition.
Jenny Owens
had a top 10 result finishing 9th in the Combined Downhill event. The second best performance by any Australian at an Olympic Games.
Australia competed in alpine skiing, figure skating, freestyle skiing, short-track speed skating and snowboarding. This was the fewest sports Australia had competed in since 1984. No Australian cross-country skiers
competed in the Olympics for the first time since 1976, and no bobsleigh sliders competed for the first time since Australia's debut in 1988. Australian bobsleigh slider Will Alstergren said "We also beat half the teams currently in Salt Lake City, but unfortunately we couldn't meet the very high standard of the AOC, the Australian Olympic Committee". Australian selection standards has also been listed as a factor for Australia not competing in cross-country skiing at Salt Lake City.
During the 2002 Winter Olympics, the Australian broadcaster, the Seven Network
, included in its coverage an irreverent talk show called The Ice Dream, which interviewed several celebrities and promoted the Smiggin Holes 2010 Winter Olympic bid
. Steven Bradbury and Alisa Camplin's triumphs were celebrated by Australia post
issuing stamps of them, which followed on from them issuing stamps of Australian gold medallists at the 2000 Sydney Olympics
. They were produced by high-speed offset stamp-printing, unlike the digitally produced 2000 stamps. Bradbury's stamp was issued on February 20, and Alisa's was issued on February 22, four days after their respective victories. Each received A$
20,000 for the use of their image. Steven Bradbury said “Should get me a car. I haven’t had a car for a long time.” and later described having a stamp issued as "a great honour". Alisa was also delighted, saying “For us to be put in with the summer Olympians who had their stamps and the previous 39 sporting legends who’ve had their stamps is amazing.”
Women
Alisa Camplin provided Australia with its second gold medal for the games.
Steven Bradbury won Australia's and the Southern Hemisphere's first Winter Olympics gold medal in the 1000 metres event.
Richard Goerlitz also attended these games, but did not compete.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
competed 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
Salt Lake City, Utah
Salt Lake City is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. The name of the city is often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC. With a population of 186,440 as of the 2010 Census, the city lies in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area, which has a total population of 1,124,197...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, winning two gold medal
Gold medal
A gold medal is typically the medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture...
s the nation's best performance at the Winter Games
Winter Olympic Games
The Winter Olympic Games is a sporting event, which occurs every four years. The first celebration of the Winter Olympics was held in Chamonix, France, in 1924. The original sports were alpine and cross-country skiing, figure skating, ice hockey, Nordic combined, ski jumping and speed skating...
prior to Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
.
Medalists
| Medal | Name | Sport | Event |
|---|---|---|---|
| Freestyle skiing Freestyle skiing at the 2002 Winter Olympics Four freestyle skiing events were held at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, at the venue in Deer Valley. There were both men's and women's competition in both aerials and moguls events... |
Women's aerials | ||
| Short track speed skating Short track speed skating at the 2002 Winter Olympics 2002 Winter Olympic Games Short track speed skating. All events were held at the Salt Lake Ice Center.-Medal table:-Men's events:-Women's events:-References:*... |
Men's 1000 m |
Overview
Australia's first ever Winter Olympic gold, also the first such medal won by a competitor from any Southern Hemisphere country, was won by Steven BradburySteven Bradbury
Steven John Bradbury OAM is a former Australian short track speed skater and four-time Olympian, who won the 1,000 m event at the 2002 Winter Olympics after all of his opponents were involved in a last corner pile-up...
in the 1000m short track speed skating
Short track speed skating at the 2002 Winter Olympics
2002 Winter Olympic Games Short track speed skating. All events were held at the Salt Lake Ice Center.-Medal table:-Men's events:-Women's events:-References:*...
. Well off the pace of the medal favourites, Bradbury was positioned at the rear in the semifinal, only to see his competitors crash into each other, allowing him through to the final. Again well off the pace in the final all four other competitors crashed out at the final corner, leaving a shocked Bradbury to take the gold medal. Bradbury was also part of the 1994 relay team that won Australia's first Winter Olympics medal.
Alisa Camplin
Alisa Camplin
Alisa Camplin OAM is an Australian aerial skier who won gold at the 2002 Winter Olympics, the second ever winter olympic gold medal for Australia. At the 2006 Winter Olympics, Camplin finished third, a bronze medal...
, who hadn't won a world cup event before and was so nervous she didn't eat dinner the night before the final, won the second gold, in aerial skiing
Freestyle skiing at the 2002 Winter Olympics
Four freestyle skiing events were held at the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, at the venue in Deer Valley. There were both men's and women's competition in both aerials and moguls events...
. Jacqui Cooper
Jacqui Cooper
Jacqui Cooper is an Australian freestyle skier and motivational speaker.Cooper has been participating in aerial skiing since she was 16, and has been in the Australian team for 13 years. She has had many injuries, including a shattered knee and a broken back.She competed at the 1994 Winter...
was previously a favourite, but she injured herself before the competition.
Jenny Owens
Jenny Owens
Jenny Owens , from Sydney, Australia is an Australian freestyle skier currently living in Freshwater, New South Wales....
had a top 10 result finishing 9th in the Combined Downhill event. The second best performance by any Australian at an Olympic Games.
Australia competed in alpine skiing, figure skating, freestyle skiing, short-track speed skating and snowboarding. This was the fewest sports Australia had competed in since 1984. No Australian cross-country skiers
Cross-country skiing
Cross-country skiing is a winter sport in which participants propel themselves across snow-covered terrain using skis and poles...
competed in the Olympics for the first time since 1976, and no bobsleigh sliders competed for the first time since Australia's debut in 1988. Australian bobsleigh slider Will Alstergren said "We also beat half the teams currently in Salt Lake City, but unfortunately we couldn't meet the very high standard of the AOC, the Australian Olympic Committee". Australian selection standards has also been listed as a factor for Australia not competing in cross-country skiing at Salt Lake City.
During the 2002 Winter Olympics, the Australian broadcaster, the Seven Network
Seven Network
The Seven Network is an Australian television network owned by Seven West Media Limited. It dates back to 4 November 1956, when the first stations on the VHF7 frequency were established in Melbourne and Sydney.It is currently the second largest network in the country in terms of population reach...
, included in its coverage an irreverent talk show called The Ice Dream, which interviewed several celebrities and promoted the Smiggin Holes 2010 Winter Olympic bid
Smiggin Holes 2010 Winter Olympic bid
The Smiggin Holes 2010 Winter Olympic bid was a joke campaign initiated by Australian comedians Roy and HG to bring the 2010 Winter Olympics to the tiny and little-known village of Smiggin Holes, part of the Perisher Blue ski resort, in New South Wales, Australia...
. Steven Bradbury and Alisa Camplin's triumphs were celebrated by Australia post
Australia Post
Australia Post is the trading name of the Australian Government-owned Australian Postal Corporation .-History:...
issuing stamps of them, which followed on from them issuing stamps of Australian gold medallists at the 2000 Sydney Olympics
2000 Summer Olympics
The Sydney 2000 Summer Olympic Games or the Millennium Games/Games of the New Millennium, officially known as the Games of the XXVII Olympiad, were an international multi-sport event which was celebrated between 15 September and 1 October 2000 in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia...
. They were produced by high-speed offset stamp-printing, unlike the digitally produced 2000 stamps. Bradbury's stamp was issued on February 20, and Alisa's was issued on February 22, four days after their respective victories. Each received A$
Australian dollar
The Australian dollar is the currency of the Commonwealth of Australia, including Christmas Island, Cocos Islands, and Norfolk Island, as well as the independent Pacific Island states of Kiribati, Nauru and Tuvalu...
20,000 for the use of their image. Steven Bradbury said “Should get me a car. I haven’t had a car for a long time.” and later described having a stamp issued as "a great honour". Alisa was also delighted, saying “For us to be put in with the summer Olympians who had their stamps and the previous 39 sporting legends who’ve had their stamps is amazing.”
Alpine skiing
Men- Combined: Aaron Bear (DSQ), Craig Branch (DNC)
- Downhill: Craig Branch (45th/54), Aaron Bear (37th)
- Giant slalom: Bradley Wall (33rd/78)
- Slalom: Michael Dickson (DNF)
- Super-G: Craig Branch (27th/34), Aaron Bear (DSQ)
Women
- Combined:Jenny OwensJenny OwensJenny Owens , from Sydney, Australia is an Australian freestyle skier currently living in Freshwater, New South Wales....
(9th), Alice Jones (12th), Rowena Bright (24th) - Downhill: Alice Jones (27th), Jenny Owens (29th)
- Giant slalom: Jeannette Korten (DSQ), Jenny Owens (DNF)
- Slalom: Jeannette Korten (25th/70), Rowena Bright (DNF), Kathrin Nikolussi (DNF), Zali Steggall (DNF)
- Super-G: Jenny Owens (29th/43), Alice Jones (DNF)
Figure skating
- Men: Anthony LiuAnthony LiuAnthony Liu is an Chinese-Australian figure skater. He originally represented China but became an Australian citizen in 1996. He is a seven time Australian national champion. He represented Australia at the 1998 Winter Olympics, where he placed 25th, and at the 2002 Winter Olympics, where he...
(10th/28) - Women: Stephanie ZhangStephanie ZhangStephanie Zhang Stephanie began her skating athlete career at the age of four, by the age of seven she was selected to be in the China's national team. But later moved to Australia with her parents at the age of nine. Because her talent Australia have offered her citizenship at the age of thirteen...
(25th/27)
Freestyle skiing
- Women's aerials: Alisa Camplin (1st/21 - gold), Lydia Ierodiaconou (8th), Jacqui Cooper (DNC - injured)
- Men's moguls: Adrian Costa (18th/30), Trennon Paynter (23rd)
- Women's moguls: Maria Despas (21st/29), Jane Sexton (25th), Manuela Berchtold (27th)
Alisa Camplin provided Australia with its second gold medal for the games.
Short-track speed skating
- 500m: Steven Bradbury (14th/31), Andrew McNee (28th)
- 1000m: Steven Bradbury (1st/29 - gold), Mark McNee (15th)
- 1500m: Steven Bradbury (10th/29), Mark McNee (28th)
- 5000m relay: Australia (Steven Bradbury, Stephen Lee, Alex McEwan, Andrew McNee) (6th/7)
Steven Bradbury won Australia's and the Southern Hemisphere's first Winter Olympics gold medal in the 1000 metres event.
Richard Goerlitz also attended these games, but did not compete.
Snowboarding
- Parallel giant slalom: Zeke Steggall (26th/32)