ISHA News: Lifetime Achievement Award to Jeff Byrne
ISHA’s Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Jeff Byrne of Lake Placid, New York, at ISHA's annual Awards Banquet in March during Skiing History Week. The honor recognizes Byrne’s lifelong promotion of skiing and its culture. Byrne has dedicated his career to professional coaching, to the organizational development of winter sports and to making snowsports accessible for everyone. His 50 years of volunteer work with the U.S. ski and snowboard teams was recognized by them in 2021 with the John J. Clair Award for Service.
Photo top: Jeff Byrne, left, receives the ISHA Lifetime Achievement Award from ISHA chair Rick Moulton.
For more than a decade Byrne directed and handled development and managed winter sports and skiing for Special Olympics International. During that time, he oversaw six Special Olympics World Winter Games with more than 65 participating nations.
He then spent 20 years, before retiring in 2018, as senior vice president of the New York State Olympic Regional Development Authority. His duties included overseeing corporate development; managing events, marketing and communications; and supervising managers for the three state-owned ski areas—Whiteface, Gore and Belleayre—as well as the Olympic Jumping Complex and Olympic Center in Lake Placid.
The position also included maintaining a productive relationship with the United States Olympic Committee, the U.S. governing bodies of sport and various international sport federations for venue use and competitions, as well as managing the contract with the New York Ski Educational Foundation.
Throughout this tenure and right through the March 2025 events in Turin, Italy, Byrne has also volunteered his organizational skills working to support the Special Olympics World Winter Games.
Alessandra Ravanelli Joins ISHA Board
The ISHA board has elected a new member, Alessandra Ravanelli of Vienna, Austria. Ravanelli is a veteran screenwriter, author, film producer and voice-over actress. Her multifaceted career includes coaching for film companies and serving as a creative director for prestigious ad agencies in Vienna. Her work includes stints in Los Angeles, New York and in Australia.
With her partner, Markus Knaus, Ravanelli won a 2022 ISHA Film Award for the video 120 Years Ski Club Arlberg. Their company, Blue Danube Media, is working on several ski-related projects, including a feature film, The Skimeister, about the life of Hannes Schneider. The company previously produced a 12-part TV series, The World of Skiing, and a documentary on the wildlife of Austria’s Arlberg region