Paralympics – FasterSkier

(Press Release) Oksana Masters and Kendall Gretsch Go 1-2 in Women’s Individual Sitting Biathlon

FasterSkierMarch 11, 2022

By Stuart Lieberman | TeamUSA.org ZHANGJIAKOU, China — Considering that March is Women’s History Month, U.S. Paralympic Nordic skiers Oksana Masters and Kendall Gretsch are certainly making their fair share of contributions to the history books. Masters and Gretsch picked up gold and silver medals, respectively, on Friday at the Paralympic Winter Games Beijing 2022, with Masters winning the women’s individual sitting biathlon in 42:17.9 and Gretsch finishing second in 42:23.7. It was the third time...

Para Nordic Racing

U.S. Paralympics Nordic Skiing On a Roll at Para Worlds in Lillehammer

Rachel PerkinsJanuary 21, 2022

It’s late January and we’re deep into the race season. As the Olympics and Paralympics draw nearer, we’ve simultaneously just wrapped up the Tour de Ski, the U.S. Cross Country Championships, and another wave of SuperTour races. Never a dull moment in the racing world, the Para World Championships are currently well underway, running January 13-23rd in Lillehammer, Norway. Normally occurring on odd years, the World Championships were postponed from last February due to the...

News Para Nordic Product News

Norwegian Start-up Rethinks Dryland Sit-Ski

Jason AlbertSeptember 26, 2017

There are ah-ha moments when an idea comes — poof — out of thin air. Then there are blunt-force type ideas, when reworking, redirecting and reconfiguring brings about the desired outcome. For five students from Norway who recently formed a start-up called

General Interviews IPC News Para Nordic Racing

South Korea’s Medal Hope, Eui Hyun Sin Preps for Home Paralympics

Gabby NaranjaMay 25, 2017

For a few days at the end of January, a sea of stringed kites fills the skies of many cities in South Korea. The normally crowded streets of downtown Seoul — the country’s capital — empty and become almost devoid of people. Many of the residents are indoors with their families, or en route to the hometowns of relatives, all in order to celebrate Seollal, one of the nation’s greatest Korean holidays. Generally spanning a...

General Interviews Para Nordic

Canada’s 10-Time Paralympian, Bourgonje Bows Out, Keeps Spreading Paralympic Message

Alex KochonMay 22, 2014

Twenty-two years ago, Colette Bourgonje was a grade-school teacher with a ticket to the Albertville Paralympics. But the school wasn’t about to let her take off for her first Paralympics. She went anyway and began an unprecedented streak of competing at seven Winter Paralympics -- 10 Paralympics in all.

Canadian National Ski Team General IPC News Para Nordic Racing

Double Gold for Canada on Last Day of Paralympics: Klebel Gets First Medal, McKeever Notches 10th Win

FasterSkierMarch 16, 2014

Chris Klebl earned his first Paralympic medal in impressive fashion, winning gold in Sunday's cross-country 10 k sit-ski race on the last day of the Sochi Games. Brian McKeever took his third gold of the week, 10th total, the most of any winter athlete in Paralympic history.

Camps General Interviews IPC Para Nordic Racing

U.S. Paralympics Outlook: Farra’s Vision of a World-Leading Team

Mark VosburghNovember 12, 2013

Selected to head up the U.S. Paralympics Nordic Program just three years ago, John Farra is already thinking medals for his team at the Sochi Paralympics in March, and believes they'll be on par with the Russians by the 2018 Games.

Canadian National Ski Team General

Now a National Champ, McKeever Again Adaptive Skier of the Year; Bourgonje Top Female

Alex KochonApril 28, 2013

Brian McKeever continued to impress this season, and Colette Bourgonje and Mark Arendz further showed the strength of Canada's Para-Nordic squad. New to skiing, Tatyana McFadden stood out as the top American female.

Interviews Training US Ski Team

How Paralympians Train: Interview with Sean Halsted

Chelsea LittleJuly 31, 2012

With the 2012 Paralympics starting in London in roughly a month, adaptive athletes who compete in summer sports are putting the finishing touches on their trainings. And winter athletes, too, are hard at work, training just as intensely as their able-bodied counterparts, if a little bit differently. This spring in Bend, Oregon, FasterSkier chatted with Sean Halsted, a veteran member of the U.S. national team who finished seventh, ninth, and tenth in the sit-ski races...

News Other News

U.S. Paralympics and NENSA Partner to Create Paralympic Sport – Northeast

Audrey ManganJuly 26, 2012

New Gloucester, ME – U.S. Paralympics, a division of the U.S. Olympic Committee, and New England Nordic Ski Association (NENSA) have partnered to create Paralympic Sport – Northeast. Paralympic Sport – Northeast is a community-based sports club developed to involve youth and adults, including active duty service members and veterans, with physical and visual disabilities in ongoing sports and physical activity, regardless of skill level. All programs and activities will be based in the Northeast...

General Interviews News

Paralympian Bob Balk Looking Forward to Innsbruck

Alex KochonDecember 6, 20111

Driving his uncooperative truck about 30 miles per hour on a highway shoulder, Bob Balk kept his spirits up. Sure, he had just spent about $900 to fix the vehicle, only to have the mechanics return it scratching their heads. Maybe it was bad gas; they couldn’t tell. But the seven-time Paralympian was used to challenges, so driving three hours roundtrip from his hometown in Moravia, N.Y., to Rochester didn’t phase him. Balk could empty...