Marvin "Marv" Melville (1935 - )
The competitive spirit of Salt Lake City native Marvin Melville ran deep during an impressive ski racing and coaching career that spanned more than 50 years. His accomplishments were far-reaching: winning the 1952 Knudsen Cup giant slalom, the premier high school race of the period, and competing in the Junior National Championships in 1952 and 1953 and other national senior competitions, including the U.S. National Championships, Roche Cup and the Harriman Cup. In 1955 he won the Snow Cup, was named an NCAA All-American while skiing for the University of Utah, and was named to the 1956 U.S. Olympic Team. In 1958 he competed in the FIS World Championships in Bad Gastein, Austria. In 1959 he won the NCAA downhill and slalom and finished fourth and fifth in the U. S. National Championships. That same year he was selected for the 1960 U. S. Olympic Team.
After finishing 22nd in the downhill at the 1960 Olympic Winter Games, Marv established the Alpine Training School (ATS) to aid young skiers advance in their disciplines. He coached the University of Utah (U of U) Ski Team from 1963 to 1966 and was an assistant coach for the 1964 U.S. Olympic Team. In 1978 he joined the Masters Class ski racing circuit where he dominated his age group in alpine and cross-country competitions through 2002. Marv was inducted into the U of U Crimson Club Hall of Fame in 1992 and was recognized by the U of U J. Willard Marriott Library’s Ski Archives in 2005 as a History Maker.
