UNSW has successfully defended the national university champions title at the 2017 Snow Unigames, maintaining its hold on the titles of overall female champion, overall male champion, and cross-country champion.

The team featured UNSW Ben Lexcen Scholars (and Winter Olympians) Taylah O’Neill and Callum Watson, who won their moguls and cross-country ski events respectively, along with elite athlete scholars Zoe Spanos, Phoebe Tudhope, Greg Whitehead and Kate Hobbs. 

Thredbo put on a show in what was a tightly contested affair, as the best university skiers and snowboarders took to the mountain for the four-and-a-half-day event.

The increasing popularity of snow events saw more than 380 student-athletes from New South Wales, Victoria, the Australian Capital Territory and – for the first time – Queensland, take to the mountain.

University of Technology Sydney, Macquarie University, The Australian National University and University of Canberra each brought teams of more than 50 student-athletes. University of Technology Sydney secured second place overall and the individual snowboard female trophy. Finishing a close third overall was The University of Sydney.

Ben Lexcen Sports Scholarships support students with an outstanding ability in sport. The aim is to enable scholars to continue to excel at their sport while also assisting their academic endeavours. Applications for Ben Lexcen Scholarships in 2018 close on 30 September.

Read more about the 2017 Snow Unigames on the Australian University Sport website.