I was born in 1943 in post-war Austria into an impoverished aristocratic family. Through political circumstances we were refugees in our own country, having lost everything. My brother and I grew up thinking our paternal grandmother had died somewhere in Russia. We lived in a small village surrounded by high mountains covered in snow. Skiing came naturally to me and I became a member of the Austrian National Ski Team (1961-1967) which opened a window to the world for me. In 1968 I retired from ski racing and came to Australia as a ski instructor for the winter months. Back in Austria, I started a marketing career in the ski business promoting Tyrolia ski bindings, now known under the famous brand name of HEAD. Eventually my job took me to Japan where we increased the market share dramatically, which earned me the AMF Chairman's Business Award 1983 - the highest award given to a woman. After 17 years with HEAD, I decided to start my own business - Christina Consulting Japan - which provided me with a number of roles: a Cultural Lecturer for Asahi Shinbum, running Elegance Seminars for ladies, a 'Pin Up Girl' for White Pia Ski resort, and consultant for Hayman Island on the lucrative Japanese market when it reopened in the 1980s. I published three books in Japan covering lifestyle, business and marriage. I was a Special Correspondent during the Nagano Olympics in 1998 for Shinano Mainichi, the local newspaper, and had a regular column in Ski Graphic. The most challenging writing experience was as an 'Agony Aunt' for the Japanese Magazine MIL. I have also written a book about my time as a ski racer: "The World is my Home" (Die Welt ist meine Heimat) 2006. Skiing is still my greatest passion and I aim to keep helicopter skiing in Kamchatka, Russia. I married John L. Stitt in 1993. We live in Sydney and have no children.