Beyond the Olympics 2002-2004

Returning to France after the Olympics the team was given immense moral support and practical assistance by the local community in Les Arcs. Jayaram, who had a few years earlier been denied membership of the main resort ski club, was now regarded as a local hero and all doors were opened to him – and indeed to the other members of the team.

Laxmi and Shyam were able to benefit now from dedicated training slopes and the free services of various local trainers and technicians. Jeremy du Grandbois joined the team as Cross Country and fitness trainer whilst Ben Smith took responsibility for Freestyle training and equipment care. Richard concentrated on Alpine training, coaching the younger skiers himself and using other local race trainers to help Jayaram wherever possible.

Richard with the 2nd generation of skiiers: Shyam Dhakal (20) and Laxmi Khadka (16)	Villaroger. the most charming ski hamlet, connected to the Les Arcs resort.	One of our coaches demonstrates aerial technique over the team base.

So the Nepal Ski Team became a mascot for the local community and its picturesque base in the village of Villaroger, strewn with prayer flags and the national ensign, became a well known local landmark. The local radio even informed tourists where the team might be training that day. A smart new uniform was purchased and other skiers would cheer the team members as they raced down the slopes together.

Shyam Dhakal took to the sport like a natural. In the space of a single season he was training alongside Jayaram, now returning to Alpine events, and helping him in many ways. Three skiers training together soon developed internal competition and standards were very quickly improved.

Laxmi Khadka training in 2002, the fastest Nepali woman on skis.	Richard with the 3rd generation of skiiers: Uttam Rayamajhi (16) and Subas Khatri (19)	The 1st ever Alpine skiing cup awareded to a Nepali; Subas is runner up in the Grand Prix at Villaroger in 2007

But sadly Laxmi, the only girl in the team, found the schedule very demanding and preferred to return to her studies in Nepal at the end of 2002. It was very difficult for a single girl to be comfortable in the team and Richard wished he had the funds take on more girl skiers to keep her company. But each skier was costing about $25,000 a year to support, equip and train and without any other financial assistance the project was difficult to expand.

And there were other even more serious problems.

After the Olympics the relationship between Rana and Richard rapidly deteriorated. The Nepali media picked up the dispute between them at Salt Lake and Rana’s political enemies in Nepal made capital of it. For many years the NOC President had been at the centre of controversy. At the 2000 Olympics in Sydney 16 of his associates were sent as officials to accompany just 5 athletes and Rana’s huge business interests in India, together with his substantial financial support of Koirala, the Indian born Nepali Congress leader, made many in Nepal deeply suspicious of him. Now, after Salt Lake, several major anti Congress Party newspapers criticised his activities in America and Rana blamed Richard for the coverage.

The NOC President was severe in his retaliation. He refused to allow the Richard to accompany Jayaram to the Asian Winter Games in Japan in January 2003 and the hero of Salt Lake had to go without any professional support. Worse still, Shyam Dhakal was refused a FIS licence and so denied the opportunity to represent Nepal at all.

Instead Rana gave FIS licences to two new athletes both in their mid thirties. Pramod Lama was a wealthy American resident, a recreational Alpine skier and a personal friend of the new Crown Prince, Prince Paras. Dachirri Sherpa, a Swiss resident living near Geneva, was asked to take up Cross Country skiing and, like all Sherpas, he had a great talent for mountain endurance. Both new athletes were ‘weekend skiers’ who needed to work in other jobs rather than train all season aiming at medals. But now that the way had been shown, Rana no longer needed Richard to put together a professional team especially as there were no qualification levels required for the Asian Games and simple representation was more important to the NOC than the chance of medals. Obviously the NOC could collect the international funding and send their officials whether the athletes had a medal chance or not.

The 2003 Asian Winter Games were not a great success for Nepal. In Cross Country, Dachirri Sherpa finished last of the 15 competitors in the 30km Freestyle nearly an hour behind the leaders. But his score of 514 FIS points was a highly promising debut for the 33 year old in a sport that favours older skiers in long distance events.

Pramod Lama was a very good recreational skier but Alpine racing is a very professional sport and it was an impossible task for him to step up in class without proper training. In the Slalom he finished last of the 25 finishers with 540 FIS points, nearly a minute behind the previous skier, and he sadly failed to complete the Giant Slalom course. Jayaram Khadka, competing in his first major Alpine event, did a little better and finished 22nd in the Giant Slalom with 270 FIS points, the best team performance of the Games, but he felt hugely uncomfortable in the acrimonious atmosphere arising from the dispute between Rana and Richard and he returned to the team base in France very disillusioned.

The rest of the 2003 season was very disappointing for the team. Jayaram never recovered his spirit and finished his remaining races with very poor results. Sherpa and Lama returned to their jobs and never raced that season again. Shyam continued to train in France and went from strength to strength. By the end of the season he was challenging Jayaram in local French Ski Federation (FFS) events but Rana still refused him a FIS licence and he was consequently barred from international competition.

In the 2004 season Sherpa made a token appearance to maintain the validity of his FIS licence but Lama didn’t race at all. Jayaram set a new Nepali FIS record of 245 FIS points at La Rosiere in March but Shyam began to beat him in local FFS events. By the end of April Shyam had proven himself the best Nepali skier and Jayaram retired from Alpine competition with the intention of concentrating on Cross Country events and helping to train Shyam for Alpine races.

But Rana still refused to give Shyam a FIS licence. He was clearly the best Nepali skier and undoubtedly capable of becoming the first Nepali to qualify for Alpine events at the Turin Olympics in 2006. But the bitterness felt by the President of the NOC towards his trainer and team manager was now directly interfering with justice and the interests of the nation.

So in October 2004 Richard, Jayaram and Shyam returned to Nepal in an effort to solve the problem. Rana steadfastly refused to meet with them and Richard had no choice but to fight a public campaign. The country was still torn in civil war and Rana represented the wealthy elite in the ruling Political party whom many saw as being responsible for the appalling poverty and starvation that was driving millions of peasants into supporting the Maoist rebellion.

Shyam Dhakal, Richard Morley, Jeremy Skene and Subas Khatri resting between training runs.	Richard Morley explains the problems of corruption in Nepal in a press conference in 2004	Richard putting the team through its paces, 2004. Shyam 2nd and Jay at the rear.

Consequently the ski team became embroiled in the central struggle of the nation. Rana was opposed by several important figures and groups who met Richard and worked with him with diverse aims and motivation. Consequently the prime minister, senior politicians, Maoist cadres, the royal family, military chiefs, media chiefs, sport chiefs and many ordinary journalists and campaigners all became involved in a saga that seemed centred upon the right of a poor Nepali boy to be given a simple license to ski in international races but in probability was part of much wider struggle going on at the time.

In purely rational terms it was insane – but this was Nepal, ‘A land on its own’ as the tourist posters announced.