Tina Burford Honoured With Service To Australian Snowsports Award 2025

Tina Burford has been recognised with the Service to Snowsports Award as part of the 2025 Snow Australia Community Sport Awards, acknowledging more than three decades of outstanding service and leadership across the snowsports industry in Australia and internationally.

With over 30 years of experience in alpine resort operations, Tina is widely regarded as a trailblazer in snowsports education, athlete development and community engagement. She spent 31 years at Perisher, where she served as Snowsports Director and built one of Australia’s largest and most successful snowsports schools, earning a reputation for high-quality instructional programs and world-class coaching pathways.

Following her tenure at Perisher, Tina took on senior leadership roles at Hotham Alpine Resort, first as Resort Services Manager before being promoted to Vice President and General Manager. During her time at Hotham, she played a key role in strengthening athlete pathways and fostering deeper community connection, championing major events such as the ANC Snowboard Cross and Ski Cross competitions, and actively supporting initiatives including the Women of Winter program, which focuses on empowering women in leadership and career roles across the snow industry.

In September 2025, Tina began a new chapter as Senior Director of Skier Services at Park City Mountain in the United States, bringing with her a wealth of experience shaped by Australian snowsports and a passion for creating inclusive, progression-based programs.

Receiving the Service to Snowsports Award, Tina said the recognition was deeply meaningful.

“Being recognised with the Service to Snows_toggleAward from Snow Australia is deeply humbling,” Burford said. “As a born Austrian, snowsports are part of who I am, but what makes this recognition so meaningful is receiving it in Australia, a country where the passion for snowsports is extraordinary, despite the challenges of distance, access, and conditions.

“To be welcomed into this community and to contribute in a way that is valued and recognised means a great deal to me.”

Reflecting on her career, Tina said the most rewarding aspect has been seeing people grow through the sport.

“The most rewarding part has been seeing the full journey, from a child’s very first experience on snow to watching them grow into confident, passionate snowsports participants across so many disciplines,” she said.

“We’ve built clear pathways that can start with a child’s first day in ski school and carry them all the way to the highest levels of the sport, or simply to a lifelong love of the mountains.”

Known for her collaborative and inclusive leadership style, Tina credits open communication and curiosity as guiding principles.

“I’ve always believed in open, honest conversation and genuinely inviting people into the process,” she said. “My own career never followed a masterplan, I stayed open to new ideas and kept saying yes to learning and new experiences. The greatest pride for me comes from seeing the growth and success of the people I’ve had the privilege to lead and mentor.”

Among many highlights, Tina points to her early involvement in race operations at Perisher, helping grow Interschools events, contributing as a member of the National Demonstration Team and APSI Board, driving the homologation of the Ridge run at Blue Cow for FIS competition, and implementing a progression-based terrain park at Hotham.

Yet, she says it is the people and communities she has worked with that stand out most.

“Leading through change, collaborating with passionate individuals, and always working toward making snowsports better and more accessible, that collective journey has been the most rewarding part of all,” she said. “That’s what I’m bringing to Park City, along with a good dose of that Australian ‘just have a go’ spirit.”

Snow Australia congratulates Tina Burford on receiving the Service to Snowsports Award and sincerely thanks her for her extraordinary service, leadership and lasting contribution to snowsports in Australia.