Skiing
b. 1947, Rutland, VT
A pioneer in freestyle skiing, also known as "hot dog" skiing, Chaffee was originally an Alpine skier who took up the sport when she was three years old. She captained the 1968 women's Olympic team.
But she was also interested in freestyle skiing, which features gymnastic moves and subjective judging of style, as in gymnastics and figure skating. When it became a professional sport in 1971, there was no women's division. Chaffee joined the pro tour anyway and won world championships from 1971 through 1973.
Because she encouraged more women to get involved--and perhaps also because she embarrassed men with her victories--a women's division was added when the International Freestyle Ski Association was formed in 1973. The association's rules put more emphasis on creativity of performance, with musical accompaniment, like figure skating.
Chaffee was named to the U. S. Olympic Committee's board of directors in 1976 and she worked hard to have freestyle skiing accepted as an Olympic sport. It was added to the Olympic program in 1992 after having been a demonstration sport in 1988.
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