We are delighted that Jasmin has joined our BRIT Ambassador family. Jaz is the first Briton to win a World Championship medal in Telemark Skiing and is six time British Champion. She has achieved five World Cup victories, across all three disciplines and has 33 World Cup podiums to her name.
"As a former student at the University of Suffolk and having spent the last nine years around junior athletes on the slopes, I know the importance of supporting and improving young adult mental health.
Having been part of a club, team or an academy for the whole of my career as a skier, I know the mental health benefits of being active, having a sense of belonging and being surrounded by friends and supporters; COVID-19 is causing many young adults and students to feel isolated and lonely, therefore the opportunity to be part of an inspirational UK-wide feel-good fundraiser could not have come at a more important time. It’s a great way of feeling part of something special that will make a difference to the lives of students who need help now.
I am delighted to be part of the BRIT Ambassador family and uniting with retired and current athletes to support and improve young adult mental health throughout the UK. I urge fellow athletes, sports personalities, Winter Olympians and Paralympians to join our BRIT Ambassador and champion the BRIT 2021 Challenge at a university and/or college of their choice.
This collectively powerful approach means that together we can support, enthuse and inspire vast numbers of students and young adults who take part in the BRIT 2021 Challenge; we just need every UK university and college to enter teams and provide the opportunity for their students to participate.
I look forward to supporting students and staff at The University of Suffolk, East Coast College, Lowestoft College, Suffolk New College and West Suffolk College should they enter teams in the BRIT 2021 Challenge.”
Jaz joined the British Ski Academy as an athlete at the age of 12, competing as an alpine skier. After becoming the youngest British Ski Cross Champion ever, aged just 15, she made the England Freestyle Ski Team in 2009. It was during this time that Jaz started telemark skiing; a discipline for which she showed potential on a far larger scale, competing in 2011 at her first World Junior Championships.
Telemark skiing originated in the Norwegian region of Telemark, where in the days before ski lifts, the free heel enabled skiers to climb back up the mountain. In recent years, telemark skiing has been reinvented as a new form of downhill skiing. Telemark skiing is both graceful and beautiful to watch; the free heel allows the knee to bend further in the tun which creates a unique “lunge” position. During a telemark ski race, the competitor must keep the perfect lunge with a foots length gap between the front and back leg between turns. This video of Jaz, shows the lunge technique in action;
It was the fluidity and grace of the discipline that first inspired Jaz to telemark. Jaz was invited to the World Junior Championships after the British Telemark Ski Team spotted her results in the French Cup series following her frequent podium appearances. Jaz has been on the team ever since. Between 2014 and 2020, Jaz completed her bachelor’s degree in Sport and Exercise at the University of Suffolk. During winter, Jaz bases herself in Chamonix, France, and is currently training for the World Cup season and the World Championships. To read more about Jaz, please visit her website and follow her on social media at @jaztelemark
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