SPORTS | Striving for excellence
03 March 2006
Paralympic Winter Games a Testament to Athletic Determination
Physically challenged U.S. athletes competing in skiing, hockey, curling
Washington -- Fifty-five elite U.S. athletes, including 21 returning medalists, have arrived in Turin, Italy, for the start of the ninth Paralympic Winter Games, demonstrating their determination not to allow physical disabilities to stand in the way of their athletic dreams and prowess.
From March 10-19, 2006, the Americans will be competing against approximately 500 men and women from 40 other countries in alpine skiing, nordic skiing, sled hockey and wheelchair curling.
The first Paralympic Winter Games were held in Sweden in 1976. The 2006 games mark the first time that wheelchair curling will be contested, as well as the first time that all of the games’ events will receive televised coverage, thanks to a new 24-hour broadband channel.
However, what is most remarkable about the games is the stories of the individual athletes – the challenges their bodies have endured, and the endurance and patience that it took for them to become world-class athletes.
"The thing about the Paralympics is, they're not only incredible athletes, but all of them have been through some sort of tragedy, whether it's from an accident, an illness or even a military injury," said Bob Condron, a spokesman for the U.S. Olympic Committee in an article published February 27 in the Dallas Morning News.
Six different disability groups are allowed to compete in the games, which separate the athletes not only by gender, but by those who can stand on their own, those who must compete while seated, those who are visually impaired, and those who are mentally disabled.
Canton, Ohio, native Sandy Dukat is competing in alpine skiing, and won two bronze medals at the previous 2002 winter games in Salt Lake City. Dukat was born without a right femur and lost her leg at age four.
“I remember my father once saying, we had two choices when I was born: ‘protect her or let her go and see what happens,’” Dukat told the Akron Beacon Journal February 27. “I am so happy they opted for choice two.”
Dukat said she has a disability, “but I have no limits.” Sports have given her an outlet throughout her life, and she said, “It is hard to feel sorry for myself and my disability when I am competing with the best in the world and living the dream life of a professional athlete.”
If there was question as to whether competition in the Paralympic Games is as intense at that of the Olympics, Dukat has demonstrated that she takes her body to the limit for her sport. She has suffered multiple concussions, broken elbows, a dislocated shoulder, fractured wrists and several back injuries.
“Unfortunately, injuries come with the nature of the sport,” she said, adding that her sense of freedom is a welcome payoff for the risk.
“I love the speed and carving huge turns,” she said. And, “I love that I do not depend on my prosthetic to ski.”
Fellow skier Josh Sundquist from Charlottesville, Virginia, told the Hampton Roads-based Daily Press February 24 that the sport “is a lot more about agility and balance” than sheer brute force or endurance. "If I had two legs, obviously I would have never started skiing," he said.
Diagnosed with a rare form of cancer at age 9, Sundquist had to have his left leg amputated at the hip. While still undergoing chemotherapy, he learned to ski at 10, and began skiing competitively at 16.
Now participating in his first Paralympic Games, others often tell Sundquist that he is an inspiration. For his own part, he said that he looks to other athletes for his encouragement, especially those who are paralyzed or paraplegic. “I'm inspired by them," he said. "I mean, I have one leg."
Steven Cash, a 16-year-old from Overland, Missouri, refused to let his disability prevent him from becoming one of the top U.S. sled hockey goalies. In beating a malignant bone cancer at age 3, part of Cash’s right leg was amputated.
Cash told KSDK television in St. Louis February 10 that he has overcome a lot. "Going through life, I had doctors telling me I couldn't ride a bike,” he said. “You shouldn't listen to any of that stuff, because you have a lot of people saying you can't do this [because] you're disabled. But if you think of yourself as disabled, you can't do it. But I don't think that way at all."
His parents have said his participation in sled hockey gave him confidence after enduring the childhood frustration of wanting to be the same as his peers.
“[N]ow I think he's realized being the same isn't what it's all about,” his mother said. “Being himself and being different, and going through the struggles he did, makes him who he is today."
See “Paralympic Athlete Aids World’s Disabled” and Sports.
