FRANK McCusker, who has died aged 55, was chief executive of a leading ski club and a respected figure in the snowsports industry.

Mr McCusker was CEO of Ski Club Great Britain and his sudden death sparked an outpouring of tributes from within the industry.

He fought the French courts over an ongoing 'ski hosting' row in Val-d'Isère, which saw one of his ski instructors found guilty and fined €10,000, and set up a 'guiding' programme to protect his members.

The father-of-two, who lived near Banbury, died from a heart attack while on a cycling trip with friends on June 25.

Frank McCusker was born on June 28, 1961, in Scotland and grew up on a farm in the south west of the country with his four siblings.

After going to school in the area he studied agricultural economics at Glasgow University.

He juggled his academic exploits with his passion for sport and was a keen rugby player and enjoyed watching Celtic play football.

His first job was for Christian Salvesen – a Scottish whaling, transport and logistics company based in Edinburgh – and it was while working there he would meet his future wife Stephanie.

The couple had two children, Archie, now 14 and Molly, 11.

In 1999 he went to work for Carlson Marketing Group as a vice president of its operations in Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

The family moved to Adderbury, near Banbury where he ran a consultancy firm.

But Mr McCusker, a keen recreational skier, was a 'people' person and after four and a half years of running his own company he became CEO of Ski Club Great Britain in 2012.

The club was close to 30,000 paying members of all abilities and more than 100,000 skiers using its services, which range from detailing ski resorts, providing snow forecasts, information and advice and kit and equipment.

During his five years in the role he brought together key figures in the ski industry to set up the British Snowsports Fund to finance British athletes and grow participation in the sport, particularly among those who might not be able to afford it.

In 2014 one of the club's members was found guilty of ski hosting without qualifications – the practice of leading a group on a social tour pointing out lunch spots and best skiing areas.

The instructor was fined €10,000 and a subsequent appeal was also lost.

Mr McCusker then set up an instructor-led guiding programme so that its members could still enjoy tours and skiing together legally.

He died from a heart attack on a cycling trip with friends on June 25 and is survived by his wife Stephanie, their children Archie and Molly, his father jack, and his four siblings.