Ben Nanasca is a Filipino alpine skier who represented the Philippines at the

1972 Winter Olympics The 1972 Winter Olympics, officially the and commonly known as Sapporo 1972 ( ja, 札幌1972), was a winter multi-sport event held from February 3 to 13, 1972, in Sapporo, Japan. It was the first Winter Olympic Games to take place outside Europe ...

Sapporo ( ain, サッ・ポロ・ペッ, Satporopet, lit=Dry, Great River) is a city in Japan. It is the largest city north of Tokyo and the largest city on Hokkaido, the northernmost main island of the country. It ranks as the fifth most populous city ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

Early life

Ben Nanasca was born on December 29, 1954 in the Philippines. He has six siblings. Nanasca along with his cousin

Juan Cipriano Juan Cipriano is a Filipino alpine skier who represented the Philippines at the 1972 Winter Olympics in Sapporo, Japan. Early life Born on May 18, 1952 in the Philippines, Cipriano along with his cousin Ben Nanasca were adopted by New Zealande ...

were adopted by New Zealanders. His family had to put him for adoption due to hardships they experienced in the Philippines and left the country in 1968 after he and his cousin were adopted. Nanasca, his cousin and their adopted family resided in

Andorra , image_flag = Flag of Andorra.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Andorra.svg , symbol_type = Coat of arms , national_motto = la, Virtus Unita Fortior, label=none (Latin)"United virtue is stro ...

where the cousins skied in the

Pyrenees The Pyrenees (; es, Pirineos ; french: Pyrénées ; ca, Pirineu ; eu, Pirinioak ; oc, Pirenèus ; an, Pirineus) is a mountain range straddling the border of France and Spain. It extends nearly from its union with the Cantabrian Mountains to C ...

. They later resided in

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

and

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

Career

Nanasca and Cipriano were scouted by the Swiss government and became part of an alpine skiing development group. The government sponsored their training. The two later qualified to compete at the

for the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

. They became the first Filipino Winter Olympians. Nanasca finished 42nd among 48 finishers in the giant slalom event with the time of 4:06.20. He did not finish in the

slalom To slalom is to zigzag between obstacles. It may refer to: Sports ;Alpine skiing and/or snowboarding * Slalom skiing, an alpine skiing and alpine snowboarding discipline * Giant slalom, an alpine skiing and alpine snowboarding discipline * Super-G ...

event.

Post-Olympic

After the Olympics, Nanasca returned to the Philippines and shortly resided there before emigrating to

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

at age 18. He competed in local alpine skiing races there and was part of the New Zealand team. He also worked as a teacher for a year before starting to work with Youthtown in 1985 where he organizes outdoor camps.

Personal life

Ben Nanasca is married to Florengel, a Filipino from Dumaguete, with whom he has two daughters; Karen and Alana. Both daughters are ballerinas. Karen is a member of the Melbourne-based

Australian Ballet The Australian Ballet is the largest classical ballet company in Australia. It was founded by J. C. Williamson's, J. C. Williamson Theatres Ltd and the Australian Elizabethan Theatre Trust in 1962, with the English-born dancer, teache ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Nanasca, Ben 1954 births Living people Filipino male alpine skiers Olympic alpine skiers for the Philippines Alpine skiers at the 1972 Winter Olympics Filipino expatriates in Andorra Filipino expatriates in France Filipino expatriates in Spain Filipino expatriates in Switzerland Filipino emigrants to New Zealand Filipino adoptees