World Skiing Body Makes Payment and Issues Apology to Vanessa-Mae

The International Ski Federation has today settled a defamation claim by violinist Vanessa-Mae - who was wrongfully alleged to have qualified for the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympic Games through a series of fixed races.

The federation has indicated that an ‘appropriate payment’ has been made to the pop-violinist-turned-Olympic-skier and indicated that she ‘did not in any way fix, contrive or improperly influence the result, progress, conduct or any other aspect’ of the Olympic qualifying races.

The 37 year old instrumentalist, who competed in the giant slalom for Thailand at the Sochi Games, finished last of 74 competitors in the ladies’ two-run giant slalom.

In November 2014, an International Ski Federation hearing ruled that the results of four giant slalom qualifying races, that took place on the 18th and 19th of January 2014 at Krvavec, Slovenia were falsely inflated to artificially boost Vanessa-Mae’s qualification for the 2014 Winter Olympics.

The International Ski Federation later banned five officials from Slovenia and Italy for between one and two years for their role in the fix.

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