Cradle of skiing and of champions
Notre Dame de Bellecombe,
one of the first ski resorts,
a nursery of champions !
In 1920-1921 Baroness Rotchild began spending holidays in Megève and the first skiers hit the slopes.
In 1924 the first cable car was built in Chamonix: The Aiguille du Midi.
The first ski lift was built in Megève in 1933.
As early as 1922, a number of people started investing in tourism at Notre Dame de Bellecombe.
The resort's first hotel, the Mont Charvin, dates from 1902 but at this time there was no skiing and the “foreigners” who visited Notre Dame de Bellecombe only came in the summer.
As elsewhere, the idea of winter tourism was launched by a handful of pioneers. The first skis and poles were made by Mr François Joguet.
The area's economy, which had been almost completely based on agriculture, was already changing thanks to tourism.
The resort's first ski lift, the “Sled-tow”, was built in 1937. This was truly avant-garde (the first in France)
A number of instructors sat a test in Chamonix and started teaching skiing (Marcel Rossat-Mignod, Marcel Gardet, Yvon Mollier).
With the outbreak of war the village, which had already become a small resort, lay dormant.
In 1948, the “sled-tow” was dismantled and the first draglift in the Val d'Arly area was built on the slopes of Le Reguet, at Notre Dame de Bellecombe.
At this time, the resort had 600 beds. The ski school and the Tourist Office were in a small, refurbished barn in the village square. There were 7 instructors.
In 1959, the “Club des Sports de Notre Dame de Bellecombe” was born. It quickly became a training ground for true competitors. Thirteen skiers have worn the colours of the French Ski Team.
Competition results: (Selected)
Jacqueline ROUVIER: Several times French champion, bronze medallist at the World Championships in St Moritz (1974) etc...
Roger ROSSAT-MIGNOD: French Junior Champion, selected for the 1968 and 1972 Winter Olympics, World Cup Race winner at Berchtesgaden
Catherine QUITTET: 9 French Championship titles, several victories or top three places in World Cup races between 1985 and 1989.
And not forgetting Roger and Bernard Rossat-Mignod, Raymonde Ansanay, Max Ancenay... ... and many others who have been selected for the French team
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