Christine Davy

Australia’s Christine Davy was a pioneer in two very different areas; the first in Alpine skiing, followed by a career in aviation. Davy was introduced to the former shortly after the end of World War II, with her parents being members of the Ski Club of Australia. As a teenager she competed at the Inter-Dominions Championships in New Zealand in a rare opportunity to participate at an international competition.

During the 1950s Davy dominated the sport at the national championships, winning every downhill and slalom title from 1953 to 1960. Her performances earned her a place on the Olympic team for the 1956 Cortina d’Ampezzo Games. Despite contracting chicken pox on the journey to Europe, Davy still managed to compete in the downhill, slalom, and giant slalom in Italy, becoming the first woman from Australia to compete on snow at the Olympics. After the Games she continued to compete in races in Europe, winning several downhill and slalom events. In 1960 Davy was once again Australia’s only female competitor on snow at the Olympics in Squaw Valley, competing in three events.

Away from the slopes Davy took up flying as a hobby, becoming a pilot with Connellan Airways in Alice Springs in 1963. She was the first Australian female pilot to hold a 1st Class licence, and the first Australian women to become a check captain. In 1970 Davy was awarded with the Member of the Order of the British Empire for her services to aviation. Four years later she became the first woman to work as a pilot for a passenger airline.