You can’t keep female ski jumpers down — they just get up again and head to a higher court.
This time, the group of international female jumpers — who are suing for the right to compete in the 2010 Olympics — are taking their fight for flight to Canada’s Supreme Court.
Lawyers filed a request before the country’s highest court yesterday, asking them to revisit a lower court decision that found VANOC wasn’t violating the Charter of Rights by not staging a women’s ski jumping event.
The women tried to sue the organizing committee, arguing it was violating their rights to equality. But the B.C. Supreme Court found it was the IOC’s decision, not VANOC’s, whether to allow them to compete.
The B.C. Court of Appeal upheld the decision.
Deedee Corradini, president of Women’s Ski Jumping USA, said this is their last hope to get into 2010.
“We will keep fighting around the world … until the IOC lets them compete in the Olympic Games,” she said, adding she’s willing to take the fight to the 2014 Winter Games in Sochi, if need be. “Not to go all the way … would not be fair to these women jumpers. We would regret not exhausting every possibility.”
Ross Clark, a Vancouver lawyer representing the women, said discrimination should not be tolerated in Canada. “We hope our highest court will take a look at this and grant our declaration,” he said.
