Greene Raine, Nancy Catherine

Person

Greene Raine, Nancy Catherine

• Greene, Nancy

May 11, 1943 -

Nancy Catherine Greene Raine is a Canadian former alpine ski racer and former Canadian Senator for British Columbia. Greene was born on May 11, 1943 in Ottawa, ON. She grew up in Rossland, BC, after moving there with her family before the age of three and learned to ski at a young age, as she was the child of parents who were avid skiers. She began her ski career with Red Mountain Ski Club and competed at the Canadian Junior Championships while she was in high school. She was a member of the Canadian National Ski Team from 1959 to1968, won the Canadian Championship six times, and competed in the 1960, 1964, and 1968 Winter Olympic Games. In 1967, Greene broke the European domination of the sport, winning the inaugural World Cup. That year, she won seven of 16 events, taking the overall title with four giant slalom victories plus two in slalom and one in downhill. Her accomplishment earned her Canadian "Athlete of the Year" honours. In 1968, she won the World Cup title again, and, at that year's Winter Olympic Games in Grenoble, France, she captured a gold medal in the giant slalom by one of the largest margins in Olympic history, as well as a silver medal in the slalom. For the second time, she was named Canada's "Athlete of the Year". She also won three US Ski Championships. She married Al Raine in 1969, and had twin boys with him in 1970: Charlie and Willy. Al and Nancy built a ski cabin in Whistler in 1970 and spent their summers there coaching on the glacier for the Toni Sailer Summer Ski Camps. Following her retirement from competition, she made a major contribution to Canadian sport by accepting an appointment to the federal government's "Task Force on Sport For Canadians". During tthe 1970s, Greene also did promotional work for various companies including Rossignol, Pontiac, and Mars. When Al retired from the ski team in 1975, they moved to British Columbia full-time. Nancy became the unofficial 'Whistler Ambassador', promoting the area to investors, skiers, and the media. In 1985, following a two year sabbatical in Europe, the family returned to Whistler and built Nancy Greene's Olympic Lodge. Nancy and Al sold the hotel in 1988 and it was joined to the neighboring property, becoming Nancy Greene Lodge (what is today known as Crystal Lodge). Nancy and Al retired to Sun Peaks, BC, where Al became mayor and developed the ski resort much the same as he had done on Whistler's municipal council in the 1970s. Greene is the director of skiing at Sun Peaks Resort and skis almost every day. She and her husband built Nancy Greene's Cahilty Lodge, where they make their home. Dedicated to the promotion of her sport for more than 30 years, the Nancy Greene Ski League has been an important entry-level race program for young children. Over the years, Greene has been the recipient of numerous awards including the Order of Canada (1968), Order of the Dogwood (1968), Amateur Athletic Union's 'Female Athlete of the Year' (1967), B'nai B'rith 'Woman of the Year' (1968), BC's 'Ambassador of Tourism' (1968), Whistler's 'Citizen of the Year' (with husband Al in 1991), Hon. Doctorate of Laws, University College of the Cariboo (1999), Canadian Female Athlete of the Century (1999), HALVA International Skiing Award (1999), Hon. Doctorate of Laws, Royal Roads University (2002), Hon. Doctorate of Laws, Simon Fraser University (2004), and the Order of British Columbia (2004). She has been inducted to the Canadian National Sports Hall of Fame, the BC Sports Hall of Fame, the US Ski Hall of Fame, and is Honourary Chairman of the Nancy Greene Ski League. She is Director of Skiing at Sun Peaks Resort. In 1990, Greene and husband Al Raine were encouraged by the BC provincial government to pursue the development of a new ski resort in the Melvin Creek Valley, between Mount Currie and Lillooet, both predominantly Native communities. Perhaps coincidentally, the rough road accessing the area was paved and upgraded at this time by the government as an extension to highway 99, the main road from Vancouver to Pemberton. Despite opposition from Native groups, backcountry recreationists, biologists, and environmental organizations, the project received approval from BC's Environmental Assessment Office in 2000, but has been stalled in a series of protests and blockades since. In 1993, Greene announced her support for the right-wing Reform Party of Canada. In April 2005, Greene was named chancellor of Thompson Rivers University. On January 2, 2009, Greene took her seat as a Conservative member of the Senate of Canada. After her 75th birthday, Greene retired as a senator. She was named Olympic Ambassador for the 2010 Vancouver games. On February 12, 2010, Greene lit the Vancouver Olympic cauldron along with fellow Canadian sports icons Steve Nash, Rick Hansen, Catriona Le May Doan, and Wayne Gretzky. In 2012, she received the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal.

Ottawa, ON
Whistler
Sun Peaks, BC

Alpine ski racer
Senator
Ski instructor
Ski coach

Nancy Greene Olympic Lodge

Raine, Charlie (b. January 5, 1970)

Raine, Willy (b. January 5, 1970)

Raine, Al (b. October 22, 1941)

CA-ON-GRN001

RAD, July 2008 version. Canadian Council of Archives.

Catalogued July 2022.

1) Archival material
2) http://www.nancygreene.com/bio.htm
3) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nancy_Greene_Raine
4) https://www.britannica.com/biography/Nancy-Greene-Raine
5) https://olympics.com/en/athletes/nancy-greene
6) https://www.rosslandmuseum.ca/nancy-greene
7) https://www.sunpeaksresort.com/events-things-to-do/winter-activities/ski-with-nancy-greene