Betsy Clifford

Betsy Clifford

Betsy Clifford, alpine skier (b at Old Chelsea, Qué 15 Oct 1953). Practically raised on the slopes of her father's Camp Fortune ski area, she began skiing at age 5. At 12 she was national junior champion and at 13 Canadian senior slalom champion (1967). The following year, at age 14, she competed at the Winter Olympic Games in Grenoble, the youngest-ever Canadian skier and the youngest competitor of all the countries entered that year.

Clifford became the youngest-ever world ski champion with her 1970 victory in the giant slalom championships in Val Gardena, but was most pleased with her silver medal in the 1974 World Downhill Championship, particularly since it followed a series of tragic life events. She retired in 1976 at the age of 23.

In recognition of her achievements at such a young age, Clifford was inducted into Canada's Sports Hall of Fame in 1970, entered the Canadian Olympic Hall of Fame in 1971, and in 1982 she became a member of the Canadian Ski Museum.