Late on Friday 27 June, Malcolm Erskine released comment regarding the decision of the Board to remove him from the position that he had recently been voted into:
Dear All,
Regarding my position, supporters should be appalled that the chair and CEO continue to suppress the BSS Alpine election figures, ... Â information vital to the mandate for change needed to counter anti-Alpine bias. Those of us who encourage talented children towards careers in Alpine ski racing have been deeply frustrated by a perceived brick wall of indifference at governing body level. Alpine needs proper representation, not to harm the other disciplines, far from it, just to safeguard our own. Am I unfit to represent Alpine as the BSS board believes? Only if the openness and transparency called for in the company's Mem & Arts. carry little weight or meaning. I am considered too blunt an instrument for the board's tastes, too impatient, too pushy. Those who know me might agree, but they also know how much I care for our sport. I have urged the board to employ a separate CEO and company secretary. In a multi-sport governing body, to place company affairs in the hands of one individual provides too much authority with too little accountability.
The Alpine Gathering on Monday will go ahead. It is intended to kickstart a fundraising drive and we have senior team athletes of great talent and determination who deserve utmost support.
The fantastic UK Sport funding for Park & Pipe and for Disabled Skiing is to be celebrated. Good luck to all our snowsport colleagues. But it does little to offer hope for GB Alpine. Leading up to Sochi, Alpine and Skier X were subjected to more onerous treatment than their sister disciplines. Nothing much was happening to address this hammering of Alpine until Andy Baldwin (TJ's father) wrote to the performance director for an explanation of the grotesque disparities in GB Olympic selections. The reply, showing his contempt for FIS racing, earned an apology from BSS but no further action. Hence my candidacy.
Well, I've beaten my head on the BSS brick wall and so far earned myself a headache. I have ten days to consider an appeal. The BSS office is blessed with great secretaries but I accuse our chairman and paid executive of anti-Alpine bias. I refute their charges and I resent being denied the opportunity today to face the board. Not to face my accusers, just the board. My needling of their independent legal invigilator was private sarcasm intended to goad him into releasing the election figures. Figures that might have dented the BSS figurehead and forced the chairman and paid executive to allow a place on the board for someone willing to stand for GB Alpine's interests.
For now I am obliged to step down from your business and leave it to you to forge ahead. I trust that the spirit of the new Alpine selection criteria will be followed in months and years to come. Though no longer chair of the AST, I will feed all fundraising ideas and offers of support into whatever channel can be set up to bolster our team programmes. I will also proceed with an analysis of data from the survey called for by the Alpine Management meeting. I guarantee to safeguard the identity of all those who register an opinion.
Best wishes,
Malcolm
Release from British Ski and Snowboard