Canadian Masters’ Hall of Fame

The prestigious Canadian Masters’ Hall of Fame was inaugurated in 2006 to celebrate two decades of Masters racing in Canada–a national recreational program that took alpine skiers by storm in the mid-eighties. This recognition initiative is a fitting tribute to individuals who made outstanding contributions to the growth and development of Masters’ racing in Canada. Award presentations are made in the spring at the Canadian Masters’ Championships.

Inductee Criteria to recognize Masters racers who have distinguished themselves by their contribution to Masters’ ski racing:

  • Bring a continued and consistent commitment to promoting the values, philosophy and integrity of fair play to sports and connect those values to the game of life.
  • Embody dedication, humour and loyalty to like-minded competitors.
  • Always put sportsmanship first, inspiring other racers and newcomers and exemplifying the spirit of a well-rounded competitor.
  • To be eligible for consideration, a candidate must be:
    • A Master’s competitor for at least 20 years, at both the National and International levels, achieving reasonable performance levels.
    • A Canadian citizen.

The honour is not necessarily determined annually and can be awarded only once in a recipient’s lifetime.

Nominations should be made in writing to the Selection Committee and contain a profile outlining the reasons for nomination. The Selection Committee will determine whether an interview will be given, whether criteria have been met and subsequently whether the award will be presented that year.

Selection Committee Member Criteria:

The Selection Committee shall be appointed by the Masters’ National Committee and include two people from the West (preferably one from British Columbia and one from Alberta) and two people from the East (preferably one from Ontario and one from Québec). Appointments are encouraged to be of a minimum of two years duration for continuity and should be of those who have been racing long enough to be familiar with the cast of characters on the circuit. The timing of future appointments to the Selection Committee are encouraged to be staggered, again for reasons of continuity. When a member wishes to step down they are asked to find a replacement.

Latest Inductee

2025 Mike Robbins (1953 – ) The Town of Blue Mountains, Ontario

Mike Robbins grew up in a family with a passion for every level of ski racing, from fun races at the Osler Bluff Ski Club, to events on the World Cup stage. He was a fast junior on the Ontario Ski Team who returned to competition as an adult in 1990. Mike’s first Canadian Masters Alpine Championships/FIS Masters competition appearance was at Whistler BC, in 1993. Since that start, he has continued to race in a host of other major events on home soil including Sun Peaks, Kimberley, Panorama, Norquay, Nakiska and Stoneham as well as many FIS Masters Cup series in the USA, Europe and South America; plus, Mike has competed in two World Winter Masters Games in Europe.

Mike’s strong interest in international Masters racing started in 2005 at the FIS World Criterium Masters (WCM) (Masters World Championships) in Sun Valley, Idaho; Mike went onto compete in seven WCM events. After the first WCM, Mike sought to compete well against the best Masters racers on the planet. Over the years, Mike has maintained an elevated level of fitness and has shown unfailing dedication to improving his performance and his competitive edge. In addition to five selections to the Canadian Masters Alpine Team and very many significant podiums, Mike also won second and third place FIS Masters Cup overall globes in 2014, 2016 and 2020. In 2022, he was named the Canadian Champion of Champions. In 2024, Mike’s pursuit of excellence reached a new pinnacle when he was awarded the top FIS Overall Crystal Globe, for the 70-74 age category, an amazing achievement against a very competitive international field of equally committed and talented racers. This achievement is to date unmatched by any other Canadian Masters racer in the history of the FIS Masters Cup. Mike’s competition history highlights the true champion that he is and places him in an elite group of Masters racers in the world.

Mike is a well-respected “Grey Circuit” icon, a committed competitor and a genuine supporter of the entire Canadian ski racing community. He has a kind and generous spirit and freely shares his expertise with fellow racers. When FIS Masters racing returned to Canada in 2020, Mike wrote an inclusive article to introduce and encourage participation in FIS Masters racing. While traveling and competing in Europe, Mike juggled his schedule to attend online planning meetings for the FIS World Criterium Masters, in February 2024, hosted by Canada at Kimberley BC and accessed his contact network to secure significant corporate support for that event.

Past Inductees

2006 Florian Gauthier (1941-2005) St-Jérome, Québec

Florian Gauthier was a mature athlete whose heart and soul were still 16 years old when he passed away. He started racing decades past his prime but quickly earned the respect of youngsters and coaches on the Junior FIS circuit. Florian won his first medal at the 1987 Canadian Masters’ Championships and soon after became a regular entry in International Masters’ FIS events. ‘Flo Go’, a household name in Québec, was well liked by Masters’ competitors across Canada and the United States. He had talent, determination and displayed a “joie de vivre” like no other. In spite of his illness, Florian raced passionately until the very end.

2006 Rolf Hauge (1919-2022) Midland, Ontario

Rolf Hauge crossed over from Nordic to alpine skiing in 1986 (at the young age of 67!). He trained relentlessly to master his newly-found sport and quickly improved his Canadian ranking. Over the last twenty years Rolf has continued to show dedication and athletic ability, two of the qualities responsible for his successful international racing career. He has accumulated an extensive collection of awards including the Overall title at the 2005 World Masters’ Championships. In 2010, Rolf went to the first World Winter Masters Games in Bled, Slovenia and competed in all 3 alpine events (SL, GS, and SG) in the 90+ age category bringing home medals in all 3 disciplines. Rolf continued to be an inspiration on the race hill well into his 90’s, retiring only after knee surgery.

2007 Bob Switzer (1937-2022) Pemberton, British Columbia

Bob was born in Oshawa, Ontario. He was heavily involved in hockey until he moved to Western Canada and took up skiing at the age of 26. A few years later he was introduced to Masters’ racing and had a good share of success on the US Masters’ circuit. When the Canadian Masters’ program was established in the mid-eighties, he consistently ranked among the best in his age group. Although he won his first Canadian Masters’ Championships twenty years earlier, Bob showed no signs of slowing down and received the prestigious Champion of Champions’ award for his outstanding combined performance at the 2006 event. During his notable local and international recreational racing career he has accumulated a huge number of medals and was once named the Master racer who most exemplified sportsmanship in Canada. Bob loves racing, winning and having fun.

2008 Gar Robinson (1926-2018) Whistler, British Columbia

As a young man, Gar started racing at Grouse Mountain in North Vancouver. He then raced and coached with the UBC ski team and he was invited to the Olympic trials in the mid-fifties but he didn’t qualify. Work, family, skiing, and an annual Veterans’ race kept him busy until the Dave Murray camps and Masters’ races started in BC. Soon after, Gar became an avid competitor in every discipline at the national and international Masters’ level. Over the years Gar’s racing career took him to many interesting race venues. Among his favourite is the annual Silver Star downhill, a team event for which he has a sought-after age handicap. One of Gar’s big successes was in the 80-84 age class at the 2007 US Masters’ National Championships at Big Sky, Montana, and included a bronze medal in the Super-G and a 3rd place combined ranking against 5 other competitors. The following year he was again named to the Canadian Masters’ Alpine Team. A true “Gentle Giant” and 3 time member of the Canadian Masters’ Alpine Team. Gar enjoys the speed, the competition, socializing and mixing with all age groups.

2008 Luc Balit (1953-2007) Montréal, Québec

Luc’s courage and determination helped him become Canadian Masters’ Alpine Champion and President of the Tremblant Ski Club. He was a passionate, tenacious, competitive, fun-loving, and generous friend. Luc infected more than one of us with his love of alpine ski racing and he left his tracks in our life. His memory will live on forever. Luc was the main force behind the Baltex Cup held in Tremblant, a favorite first race of the season for a very long time.

2016 Denyse Houde (1944-) Collingwood, Ontario

Denyse and her husband, Michael, started skiing together as adults. They were involved with the Ski Patrol at Georgian Peaks for well over a decade before joining the adult racing program at Toronto Ski Club in 1984. They participated in their first Canadian Masters’ Nationals at Whistler in 1986 and have just kept going. Denyse’s out-of-country experiences go back to 1987 at the US National Championships at Mammoth Mountain, CA. Since then she also competed in dozens of FIS International Masters’ Cup events in the United States, Italy, Canada, Slovenia, France, Andorra and Chile. After the original Canadian Masters’ series folded, Denyse lobbied with Alpine Canada for many years and finally received agreement to re-start the national program. By 2000 she had pulled together a committee of provincial representatives, coordinated a modest calendar and convinced Sun Peaks to host national championships. Under her leadership, the original Masters’ website was developed, the first Canadian Masters’ Alpine Team (CMAT) members were selected, a Spyder uniform program was introduced and several other sponsorships were negotiated. Her efforts were recognized in 2005 with the ACA President’s Award of Excellence for Volunteer of the Year. Denyse’s major racing achievements include US Masters’ National Champion, South American Masters’ Cup Champion, FIS Masters’ Cup Globe, Canadian Masters’ Athlete of the Year, Canadian Masters’ Alpine Team member (9 times). These are truly outstanding accomplishments. Denyse loves ski racing and has been a well-respected fixture on the Masters’ circuit for years and no doubt will continue to be for years to come. The motto for the International Masters’ Academy founded by Denyse embodies her spirit: “we take our fun seriously”.