Is Wayne Wong The Greatest Canadian Skier Of All time?
It’s 1973 and there’s a hip new craze hitting the ski slopes. Called “hot dog” or freestyle skiing, it emphasizes “technique and high-spirited imagination rather than sheer speed,” according to this CBC-TV report. “We just go down the hill as fast and as crazy as we can,” explains Wayne Wong, one of the new sport’s biggest stars. And Doug Pfeiffer, editor of Skiing Magazine, uses popular 1970s lingo to sum up the sport: “It’s epitomized by the phrase, ‘Get it on! Let it all hang out!'” – CBC Digital Archives
Professional accomplishments
1971: 3rd place in the inaugural National Championships of Exhibition Skiing
1972: Skiing Magazine Freestyle Skier Of The Year
1972: Achieved a Level 4 Certification with the Canadian Ski Instructors Alliance
1972-76: Member of the K2 and Salomon Freestyle Ski Teams
1973: Europa Cup Freestyle Champion
1973: Featured in a national TV ad for Pepsi Cola
1974: Rocky Mountain Freestyle Skiing Champion
1975: Member of the Canadian Ski Instructors Alliance Interski Team
1975: Japan International Freestyle Skiing Championships
1984; 1986; 1987: World Powder 8 Champion
1999: Recognized in Skiing Magazine’s 50th Anniversary Issue as one of the 25 Most Influential Skiers Of All time
2000: Voted by Ski Magazine as one of the Top 100 Skiers Of All Time
2002: Olympic Torch Bearer for the 2002 Olympic Games
2004: Receive the Guardian Angel Award for his dedication to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation
2006: Named in Powder Magazine’s 35th Anniversary Issue as one of the Top 48 Greatest Skiers Of Our Time
2008: Received the Frances Williams Preston Award for his dedication to the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Research Center
2008: Appeared in Fred Ashman’s Imax movie, “Proud American”
2009: Inducted into the Canadian Ski Hall Of Fame