Canadian athletes embracing Paralympic momentum

Natalie Wilkie was connected her formation to Norway for a landmark contention erstwhile a antheral adjacent to her struck up conversation.

As the level sat delayed successful the runway, helium asked Wilkie wherefore she was headed to the cardinal European country.

She explained she would beryllium competing successful the Nordic World Ski Championships — for the archetypal time, Para events volition beryllium held alongside able-bodied races, and she is the lone Canadian competing connected the Para side.

His effect took her by surprise.

"He knew truthful overmuch astir the Paralympics and helium didn't accidental Para Olympics, helium didn't accidental Olympics. And I conscionable thought that was truly cool," Wilkie said.

"It's kinda bittersweet I was surprised."

Wilkie went connected to triumph metallic successful the one-kilometre outpouring classical lawsuit astatine the archetypal time of worlds connected Wednesday, portion Thursday marks precisely 1 twelvemonth to spell until the 2026 Milano-Cortina Paralympics footwear disconnected with an opening ceremonial successful the Arena Di Verona.

For athletes, these Games correspond a enactment of caller aerial aft the 2022 Beijing Paralympics were marred by the pandemic. The anterior 2 Games, Pyeongchang 2018 and Sochi 2014, took spot halfway crossed the satellite for Canadians and with further complications of their own.

And so, similar the Paris Games connected the summertime side, Italy is simply a accidental to erstwhile again observe the Paralympics and re-ignite the world's consciousness astir Para sport, truthful that athletes similar Wilkie are nary longer amazed erstwhile strangers recognize and prosecute with their competition.

"He recovered the Paralympics astir much interesting, successful that it was the aforesaid sports but wholly antithetic with the antithetic classifications and adaptations that Para sports often person from able-bodied sports," Wilkie said.

"The mode helium was talking astir it, I could archer helium had spent a batch of clip watching these sports."

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50th day of Winter Paralympics

Milano Cortina volition people the 50th day of the Winter Paralympics, and the 2nd clip they are held successful Italy aft Torino 2006. More than 600 athletes from 45-plus countries are expected to vie astatine what volition beryllium the vastest Games ever with venues located successful Cortina d'Ampezzo, Milano and Tesero — an country spanning implicit 20,000 quadrate kilometres.

Athletes volition bash conflict from March 6-15, 2026, successful 79 medal events crossed six athletics disciplines, including the instauration of mixed doubles wheelchair curling.

Canada volition beryllium looking to support its beardown form. After a national-record 28 medals astatine Pyeongchang, Canadian athletes reached 25 podiums successful Beijing.

Wilkie, the 24-year-old from Salmon Arm, B.C., was the youngest jock from the Canadian contingent successful Pyeongchang. Seven years later, she's a seven-time Paralympic medallist (three gold, 2 silver, 2 bronze) and seasoned of the Para Nordic squad.

"These past 3 years person truly flown by. And present that we're astatine the one-year mark, it's becoming truthful real. Like, wow, successful similar lone a year, I'm gonna beryllium lasting astatine the commencement enactment of my 3rd Paralympics. That's a brainsick thought," Wilkie said.

For the archetypal clip since Pyeongchang, Wilkie's ma volition beryllium successful attendance — and for the first-time ever, her 2 sisters volition beryllium determination too. Her ma has already booked their AirBnB and is looking into flights.

Catherine Gosselin-Despres, the main of athletics for the Canadian Paralympic Committee, said she expects Italy to beryllium a "good feeling" for athletes — and possibly skiers successful particular, since the athletics is truthful fashionable successful that portion of the world.

"It's going to beryllium a instrumentality to the caller mean and having their families determination and being capable to bent retired with each different a spot much than successful Beijing. And past each of the solemnisation that's going to travel with it," she said.

"I consciousness similar it's going to beryllium precise large and crowded and truly amusive from an ambience standpoint for the athletes and coaches and everybody connected the tract of play."

WATCH | Wheelchair curler Mark Ideson focused connected caller event:

Paralympic legacy

Gosselin-Despres besides said Italy's effort astatine leaving a Paralympic bequest includes revamped, much accessible metro systems successful Milan and Verona.

Not that Milano Cortina won't beryllium without immoderate imaginable issues — it would beryllium an outlier if everything went smoothly.

There could beryllium continued U.S.-Canada tensions, similar what was seen astatine hockey's 4 Nations Face-Off, if relations betwixt the North American neighbours neglect to simmer.

"I'm astir apt not expecting it arsenic overmuch successful different sports than hockey, but you ne'er know, right?" Gosselin-Despres said. "We consciousness beauteous Canadian these days and we — however americium I going to accidental — we consciousness the unit coming to us. So possibly it's going to motivate people."

The overarching planetary interest is implicit clime alteration and however it volition impact snowfall conditions successful March, astir 1 period aft the Olympic events.

Wilkie said the Nordic squad is already readying to contention successful 20-degree C upwind and done slush, with times expected to beryllium a interaction slower arsenic a result.

"We started wearing bandanas to a grooming campy and soaked them successful crystal h2o before, conscionable to spot if that would assistance chill our assemblage somesthesia earlier going out," Wilkie said.

Even successful the lack of Canadian Paralympic fable Brian McKeever, who transitioned to coaching aft Beijing, the Para Nordic squad is expected to proceed arsenic a large root of medals, with Wilkie and four-time Paralympian Mark Arendz astatine the forefront.

Other stars to watch

Other stars to ticker see the emergent visually impaired skier Kalle Ericsson, whose usher is erstwhile nationalist teamer Sienna Smith, and Raphaelle Tousignant, who could go the archetypal Canadian pistillate to vie successful Para hockey astatine the Paralympics.

Snowboarder Tyler Turner volition look to physique upon his palmy Paralympic debut 3 years ago, erstwhile helium won snowboard-cross golden and banked-slalom bronze.

"I can't wait. Pressure's a privilege, and what a privilege to spell correspond your country. I cognize immoderate clip I'm successful the commencement gate, I person the potential, I person the skills to triumph that contention if I enactment it each together, truthful I conscionable privation to support this momentum going," Turner said.

Still, arsenic Turner indicated, thing is guaranteed.

WATCH | Turner's Paralympic journey:

As such, Gosselin-Despres was hesitant to supply a projected medal count, since the adjacent twelvemonth could bring breakout stars and devastating injuries alike.

"We person a premix of caller and aged athletes. So that'll beryllium interesting. And we've done beauteous [well] successful the past fewer seasons. I don't privation to jinx it excessively much, but it's been truly affirmative to spot the performances," she said.

Now, the extremity is to support gathering — for athletes to triumph medals, and for the Paralympic question itself to turn and proceed its caller era.

"I deliberation Paris is truly benignant of similar a turning constituent for that," Wilkie said. "And I deliberation these adjacent Paralympics successful the wintertime tin beryllium arsenic well. So I'm conscionable really, truly excited to stock the sport, hopefully get immoderate much fans, animate immoderate kids."