Lawyers arguing women's Olympic ski jumping

VANCOUVER, British Columbia — A lawyer representing female ski jumpers suing to compete in the 2010 Winter Olympics summed up his case on Friday by arguing that contracts the games' organizers signed with the International Olympic Committee are subject to Canadian law.

"It's the IOC's Games, but at least we will apply our laws to our citizens in our country," Ross Clark said. "The IOC is not included in any contract that is above the law."

Fifteen current and former jumpers — from the U.S., Canada, Slovenia, Austria, Germany and Norway — have sued the Vancouver Organizing Committee, saying that if men are jumping in the games, women must be included, too.

VANOC lawyer George Macintosh summed up his argument by saying the IOC decides what sports are included in the games and is governed by Swiss law. He also said that the host contract the IOC signed with Vancouver in 2003 is not negotiable and makes it the games' regulatory body.

Although the IOC decides which events are held, Clark said VANOC is controlled by Canadian government agencies that signed the host contract and therefore the committee is subject to Canadian law.

He said if B.C. Supreme Court Justice Lauri Ann Fenlon rules against VANOC, the organizing committee must tell the IOC to allow all ski jumpers to compete or cancel the three men's ski jumping events planned for the games slated for Feb. 12-28.

It's not known when Fenlon will issue her ruling. Both sides will have the right to appeal.

Clark said it would be "tragic" if the men's events are canceled.

"If that's the result that flows from this, it would be the fault of the IOC and no one else," he said.

The IOC says women's ski jumping hasn't had enough international competitions to merit inclusion.

VANOC spokeswoman Renee Smith-Valade backpedaled on an earlier statement in which she said the female jumpers will have to wait until 2014 to compete because the program set for Vancouver in 2006 cannot be changed.

"I'm not saying it's impossible," she said outside the court on Friday, "(but) it's increasingly difficult to include it."

Deedee Corradini, former mayor of Salt Lake City, which hosted the Winter Games in 2002, and who is acting as spokeswoman for the jumpers, doubts the IOC would cancel men's jumping and is confident the women will jump.

"The IOC is controlled by Europeans. In Europe ski jumping is huge. The skiers are rock stars," she said. "There's no way skiers are not going to be jumping in 2010."

American jumper Lindsay Van, who won the first women's World Championship in February in the Czech Republic, said the case should never have gotten to this point.

She said the men support including women's events in the games.

"We have been training together all our lives," she said. "We thought we'd be in an Olympics together."