Sam learnt to ski at Turoa when he was four years old. In 2012 he headed South with his family during the July school holidays and he participated in the Coronet Peak based Queenstown Alpine Ski Team (QAST) holiday program.
At the completion of this programme Sam had the opportunity to compete in his first ever race, the Junior Interfield. He loved it and wanted to do more. Sam began his full commitment to ski racing a few years later at age 11 with Stockman Sports. His first time experiencing international children’s ski racing was the 2016/17 season in Obersaxen, Switzerland.
Sam’s first competition was the Coronet Peak Junior Interfield when he was eight years old. He went on to compete in the NZ Youth Series (now called National Points) at 12 years old in 2015.
Sam’s most memorable moment skiing would be cat skiing in deep powder in Japan with his family. Another epic moment would have to be hurtling down The Hurdle at Coronet Peak at the 2022 Winter Games NZ FIS ANC races.
Sam’s goal for skiing is to represent New Zealand at the Junior World Championships and the Winter Olympics and be a strong contender in the Alpine World Cup men’s circuit. As an athlete Sam want to inspire young skiers in NZ to become hooked on the sport and explore their own pathways into competitive ski racing.
When Sam isn’t skiing his favourite hobbies are golf, water-skiing and hunting.
