Our People

If there is one person who embodies the values and aims of Verbier4All, it is Jean-Yves Michellod. Local hero, mountain guide and steep-face skier, in 2004 he won the Xtreme Verbier. Two years later, his life was turned upside down when, following a serious accident in the mountains, he sustained an incomplete spinal injury. But Jean-Yves stunned the sporting world and beyond with his perseverance and unaltered desire to ski powder. In his Tessier Scarver, Jean-Yves attacked extreme faces that pose a challenge to able-bodied skiers, pushing himself to his limits and making films about it. Just one year after his accident, he won Hike and Ride, a competition combining skiing and filmmaking, with the Falquet brothers and, with the same team, gold at the renowned Alpine Film Festival of Les Diablerets for ‘JYM Skieur Libre’. En 2009, Jean-Yves conquered the north face of Mont-Blanc, in his sitski. Married to Stéphanie and father of three, Jean-Yves also enjoys biking with his family on his handcycle and still finds the time to teach adaptive skiing and manage his taxi company.

Valérie Vaucher is the mother of two children, one of whom has a genetic neurodegenerative disease. She has a bachelor degree in Social Work. Valérie has a vast experience of running sporting organisations in Switzerland, including eight years as the president of the Sion Ski Club where she loved passing on her love for the sport. In order to help her daughter continue skiing, Valérie obtained her sitski pilot licence.

Bethan Drinkall is Chair and founder of an adaptive ski charity called Ski4All Wales. As a specialist neurological physiotherapist with over 25 years’ experience in neurological rehabilitation she understands the importance of activity-based therapy and, alongside several other therapists, runs adaptive ski sessions every Wednesday at a local plastic ski slope. She has over ten years’ practical experience of running adaptive ski trips to Verbier which gives her invaluable insight into how to forge Verbier into a gold-standard, adaptive ski resort.

Annick Meystre is a well-known expert in the field of disabled sport in Switzerland and runs Défisport with her husband Serge, himself paraplegic. She is also a member of the committee of Défisport Association and a member of the board of directors of the Swiss Paraplegic Association. She holds a Bachelor degree in Social Work (special educational needs) and is as nimble in a wheelchair as on her feet, playing wheelchair basketball at club level. Her wealth of knowledge on adaptive sports/activities is of immeasurable value to Verbier4All.

François de Borchgrave is the father of two children, one of whom has multiple disabilities. François, based in Belgium, has skied Verbier for over 20 years and his daughter, since she was three. So that his son might also experience the thrill of winter sports, François trained to pilot a sitski and, during Carnival week 2019, all three of them skied together for the first time, on the slopes of Verbier.

Kathryn Adams has been a Ski4All Wales Verbier volunteer for several years. She originally came to Verbier just to ski but found numerous reasons to stay in Switzerland. Her language and writing skills made her a natural choice for secretary of Verbier4All. 

Oliver Voelin originally hails from Bienne. From an early age he developed a passion for skiing and for Verbier. With a background in business and accounting, he currently works for the Swiss Federal Administration.