The U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association has decided to maintain management of the U.S. Disabled Ski Team, abandoning an attempt to disenfranchise it from the organization.

USSA's Executive Committee last fall developed a plan for disabled skiers to form their own "separate and parallel" national governing body, a move athletes adamantly opposed. But the USSA board of directors voted unanimously not to ratify the proposal during a meeting this past weekend in Jackson Hole, Wyo.The board's decision came after disabled skiers filed a grievance, which the USSA Judicial Committee found valid earlier this month. It also came on the heels of positive moves on the part of the U.S. Olympic Committee to resolve issues regarding the governance of Paralympic sports.

Changes to the Amateur Sports Act last year placed the Paralympics under the jurisdiction of the USOC.

USSA President Bill Marolt and new USOC President Norman Blake Jr. met recently, leaving the ski association "optimistic that the USOC will deal aggressively with the issue of Paralympic sports in America," Bill Gorton, USSA chief operating officer, said in a news release. "This issue of how to govern Paralympic athletes is of the greatest importance to all athletes, not just disabled athletes."

Jack Benedick, chairman of USSA's disabled skiing committee, said even though USSA has only set the stage for future decisions, he believes a new attitude is emerging.

View Comments

"There are a number of options being considered by USOC, and they seem to president a solid basis for moving along a positive vein now that this particular sword no longer hangs over our heads," he said.

Join the Conversation
Looking for comments?
Find comments in their new home! Click the buttons at the top or within the article to view them — or use the button below for quick access.