Liisa Savijarvi

Liisa Savijarvi first achieved prominence as an emerging alpine ski racer in 1980 at the age of 17 with superb performances in the Ontario and Canadian Junior Championships as well as the Pontiac Cup. She was named to the national training squad after that season and two years later, in 1982, she became a member of the Canadian Alpine Ski Team.

Appointed to the “A” team in 1987 and ranked one of the best ski racers in the world, she was the only Canadian female racer to train in three events (downhill, giant slalom and super-G). Sadly, her promising career ended prematurely on March 17, 1987, when she suffered severe leg injuries and crushed vertebra in a horrendous training run accident at Vail, Colorado. Unable to recover her previous form, she retired from the national team in March 1988.

Following her retirement, she continued to be involved in the skiing world as a Canadian Ski Instructors’ Alliance Level ll Instructor, a Level lll Coach with the Canadian Ski Coaches Federation and co-proprietor of “Ski Escape”, an independent travelling ski school with operations in four provinces and 30 programs across Canada.

In 1986, she was named Ski Racing’s Alpine Skier of the Year and awarded the Canadian Alpine Ski Team Kodak Award of Excellence in the same year.

Competitive highlights

1982 – 4th place, Overall, Nor-Am tour.
1982 – 3rd place, Giant Slalom, Nor-Am tour.
1982 – 2nd place, Giant Slalom, Canadian Alpine Championships.
1983 – 1st place, Giant Slalom, Canadian Alpine Championships, Stoneham, Quebec.
1983 –3rd place, Super G event, Canadian Alpine Championships, Mont Ste Anne, Quebec.
1983 –3rd place, Overall, Nor-Am tour.
1983 –2nd place, Giant Slalom, Nor-Am tour.
1983 –3rd place, Downhill, Nor-Am tour.
1983 – 13th place, Downhill event, FIS World Cup, Mont Tremblant, Quebec.
1984 – 3rd place, Combined event, FIS World Cup, St Gervais, France.
1984 – 4th place, Giant slalom event, FIS World Cup, St Gervais, France.
1984 – 1st place, Giant Slalom event, Canadian Alpine Championships, Stoneham, Quebec.
1984 – 3rd place, Super G event, Canadian Alpine Championships, Mont Ste Anne, Quebec.
1985-1986 – 5th place, Downhill standings, FIS World Cup circuit.
1985-1986 – 2nd place, Super G standings, FIS World Cup circuit.
1985-1986 – 3rd place, Overall, NOR AM circuit final standings.
1985-1986 – 3rd place overall, Super G, FIS ranking.
1985-1986 – 4th place, Downhill event, FIS World Cup, Banff, Alberta.
1985-1986 – 1st place, Overall, Canadian Alpine Championships.
1985-1986 – 1st place, Giant Slalom, Nor-Am, Stoneham, Quebec (April 5th)
1985-1986 – 1st place, Giant Slalom event, Nor-Am, Stoneham, Quebec (April 6th)
1986-1987 – 2nd place, Downhill event, FIS World Cup, Badgastein, Austria
1986-1987 – 4th place, Downhill event, FIS World Cup, Furano, Japan
1986-1987 – 1st place, Super G event, FIS World Cup, Furano, Japan
1986-1987 – 4th place, Downhill event, FIS World Cup, Sunshine, Alberta
1986-1987 – 4th place, Downhill event, FIS World Cup, Vail, USA
1986-1987 – 3rd place, Super G event, FIS World Cup, Vail, USA
1986-1987 – 5th place, Downhill event, FIS World Cup, Val d’Isere, France
1986-1987 – 1st place, Downhill event, North American Championships, Mont Ste Anne, Quebec
1987-88 – 7th place, Super G event, FIS World Cup, Pfronten, Germany
1987-88 – 3rd place, Giant Slalom event, Europa Cup

Please Note: The ski information gathered here is compiled from a number of sources; it may not be inclusive of all accomplishments. Copyright © 2021, Canadian Ski Museum. For Personal/Educational use only. All Rights Reserved.