Ross Milne started skiing as a teenager. Talented, he made his first appearance on the Australian national team as a 16-year-old. In 1963, he won the downhill and combined events at the Australian Championships, while placing second in the slalom event. These results earned him a spot on the Australian Olympic selection for Innsbruck. While training for the downhill, Milne’s best event, he lost control and struck a tree. He was helicoptered into Innsbruck but was declared dead on arrival. It was the second fatality at the 1964 Winter Olympics, as a few days earlier, British luger Kazimierz Kay-Skrzypecki had also died in practice.