Dale Begg-Smith


Dale Begg-Smith is an Australian-Canadian businessman and former Olympic freestyle skier. Begg-Smith won the gold medal for Australia in the men's moguls event at the 2006 Winter Olympics and silver at the 2010 Winter Olympics.

Early years

Begg-Smith formed an internet company when he was 13 years old. He was skiing for his native Canada as a teenager when his coaches told him he was spending too much time on his successful business and not enough time in training.
So Begg-Smith quit the Canadian ski program and, along with his brother Jason Begg-Smith, moved to Australia at age 16 to live with his cousin Nicole. The brothers chose to ski for Australia because the country had a smaller ski program that offered them more attention and flexibility to successfully manage their business.
The brothers stayed out of competitive skiing for three years and instead trained with the Australian team, living in Jindabyne, New South Wales each winter. The pair qualified for Australian citizenship, in 2003–04, after three years and were then free to compete for their adopted country.

Career

Begg-Smith is one of only five Australians to win a gold medal in a Winter Games and the youngest to win an Olympic Gold in the history of men's freestyle mogul skiing.
In the lead-up to the 2006 Winter Games, Dale Begg-Smith won three World Cup rounds and was ranked world number one in the moguls' discipline.
Begg-Smith holds the record for qualifying for the most consecutive World Cup finals in events he entered. In March 2010, he reached his 48th consecutive final. His fourth World Cup title in 2010 also put him even with French Skier Edgar Grospiron for most World Cup wins.
Begg-Smith won silver at the 2010 Winter Olympics held in Vancouver, leading to some complaints about biased-judging from members of the Australian coaching staff. "Sometimes you're in the good graces of the judges, sometimes you're not," Gold medalist Alex Bilodeau said. "Judged sports can't be perfect. It can be a bad part of my sport. I see it. But everybody is going to be equal in the end."
Begg-Smith represented Australia at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, reaching the 2nd qualifying round.

Personal

Begg-Smith is considered a recluse by many, and has repeatedly refused to communicate with non-Australian media, Canadian media in particular. NBC dubbed him "the most mysterious man of the Winter Olympics" in a piece aired on 14 February 2010, during the Vancouver games.
Alisa Monk, coordinator of the moguls program, said that she booked Begg-Smith's hotels and flights economically, despite his wealth. "Wherever the team stays, he stays. There are certainly no big demands. You wouldn't know he had a bit of money." She also said, "When he is at Perisher he stays in the same hut as the other mogul skiers and his brother."
After the 2010 Haiti earthquake, Begg-Smith donated his prize money – about $13,670 – to earthquake relief efforts in Haiti.

Business controversy

There are claims that Begg-Smith's internet advertising business, Ads CPM later called CPM Media, had been linked to the distribution of malware. The Sydney Morning Herald reported that "a trail of digital fingerprints scattered over the web... shows Mr Begg-Smith's long and rewarding involvement in the distribution of "malicious software". Begg-Smith's manager, David Malina, said reports about his client's business had been "exaggerated", and that "it's not really something that he's involved with anymore... he's minimised his involvement to concentrate on his sport."

Honours

On 21 February 2006, Australia Post issued a postage stamp commemorating Begg-Smith's achievement, saying his gold put him in a "small and honoured group of athletes". In 2005, he was awarded Ski and Snowboard Australia's Snowsports Athlete of the Year.

Results

Olympic results

World Championship results

DateLocationDisciplineEventResult
9 March 2007Madonna di Campiglio, ItalyMoguls2007 Freestyle World ChampionshipsSilver
10 March 2007Madonna di Campiglio, ItalyDual Moguls2007 Freestyle World ChampionshipsGold
19 March 2005Ruka, FinlandMoguls2005 Freestyle World Championships Bronze

World Cup Season Victories

DateDiscipline
2005–2006Moguls
2006–2007Moguls
2007–2008Moguls
2009–2010Moguls

World Cup Podiums

DateLocationDisciplinePlace
18-03-2010Sierra NevadaMogulsSilver
1-01-2010Lake PlacidMogulsSilver
16-01-2010Deer ValleyMogulsSilver
14-01-2010Deer ValleyMogulsGold
09-01-2010CalgaryMogulsGold
08-01-2010CalgaryMogulsGold
08-03-2008AreDual MogulsSilver
07-03-2008AreMogulsGold
16-02-2008InawashiroMogulsGold
20-01-2008Lake Placid, NYMogulsGold
18-01-2008Lake Placid, NYMogulsSilver
03-03-2007VossMogulsGold
02-03-2007VossMogulsGold
24-02-2007ApexMogulsGold
18-02-2007Listel – InawashiroDual MogulsGold
06-02-2007La PlagneDual MogulsGold
05-02-2007La PlagneMogulsBronze
06-01-2007Mont GabrielMogulsGold
18-03-2006Apex, BCMogulsGold
01-03-2006Jisan Forest ResortMogulsGold
04-02-2006Spindleruv MlynMogulsSilver
28-01-2006Madonna di CampiglioMogulsGold
22-01-2006Lake Placid, NYMogulsGold
20-01-2006Lake Placid, NYMogulsGold
13-01-2006Deer Valley, UTMoguls Bronze
18-12-2005OberstdorfMogulsGold
11-02-2005NaebaMoguls Bronze
05-02-2005InawashiroMogulsSilver
29-01-2005Deer Valley, UTMogulsSilver