Aberta Apine Congratulates 2010 Paraympic Ski Team
Apine Canada Apin announced the 16 athetes who will represent Canada at the 2010 Paralympic Games, set to open March 13th.
Included in the Team is Alberta Alpine athlete, Kirk Schornstein (Alberta Ski Academy) who has competed his entire ski racing career in Alberta Alpine programs.
We congratulate Kirk for his great results this winter which earned his spot on the Team - as the youngest member of the squad - along with fellow Alberta athletes Lauren Woolstencroft (Calgary), Kimberley Joines (Edmonton) and Viviane Forest (Edmonton) as well as the entire Team.
ACA News Release:
WILLIAMSON AND WOOLSTENCROFT TO LEAD 2010 PARALYMPIC SKI TEAM
Sixteen-member ski team focused on contributing to Canada’s Paralympic medal count
CALGARY, AB (March 9th , 2010) – Christopher Williamson (Markham, ON) and Lauren Woolstencroft (North Vancouver, BC), both multiple Paralympic Winter Games medalists, lead a list of 16 ski racers intently focused on contributing to Canada’s medal totals during the 2010 Paralympic Winter Games, Alpine Canada Alpin (ACA) announced today. Williamson, a three-time medalist including gold in slalom in 2002, will be guided by Nick Brush (Panorama, BC) at the 2010 Paralympic Games in Whistler, BC. Williamson and Brush have been together for most of the last three seasons but will be competing together at the Paralympics for the first time.
“It is great to be nominated on the Canadian Paralympic team for the third time. Hopefully I’ll have a lot more success this time then the last two, because I was injured. But I will be taking the next two weeks and a half with a very positive state of mind,” said Williamson, who suffered freak injuries while training prior to the Paralympic Games in both 2002 and 2006. “My objectives for these Games are to medal in all five events that I will participate in. I have way too much respect to my competitors to say that I could win gold in every event but when I am in the start gate, I think that is always the main goal.” said Williamson, who won the overall Crystal Globe in the men’s visually impaired category this season after winning eight IPC World Cup events this season. Woolstencroft has an impressive five career Paralympic medals including three gold. Her last gold medal came in giant slalom at the 2006 Games in Turin, ITA.
Kimberly Joines (Rossland, BC), a 2006 bronze medalist in the super-G, was also named to the Canadian team today along with Jeff Dickson, a three-time Paralympic medalist dating all the way back to 1992.
Karolina Wisniewska (Vancouver, BC) came out of retirement in 2007 to compete in the 2010 Paralympic Games. Wisniewska, who has six career Paralympic medals, became the first Canadian alpine skiing athlete in either Paralympic or Olympic Winter Games competition to win four medals when she accomplished the feat at the Salt Lake City Games in 2002. “I’m really excited. I worked really hard to get here. These will be my third Paralympic Games, I didn’t race in Torino but I decided to come back for 2010. So I’m really excited that I made it this far and things are going pretty well. I feel like I am exactly where I have to be right now,” said Wisniewska. “Having the Games on home soil will definitely make it different, but I think it will be a good different and I am ready to embrace it as much as possible.” There are a total of seven skiers with Paralympic Winter Games experience. Of the nine racers who will be at their first Paralympic Winter Games,
Viviane Forest (Edmonton, AB) along with her guide Lindsay Debou (Whistler, BC) is an overall IPC World Cup champion in 2009 and 2010.
The list of first-time Paralympians also includes 2009 IPC World downhill champion Josh Dueck (Vernon, BC) while seventeen-year-old Kirk Schornstein (Edmonton, AB), a member of the national development team, is the youngest team member.
“Canada’s Para-alpine ski racers are at the end of the most successful Paralympic cycle in their history and were atop the Nation’s Cup standings for the first time ever last season,” said CPAST, High Performance Director Jean-François Rapatel. “Our goal all along has been to create a para-alpine program that is capable of sustaining success in the long-tern and the 2010 Paralympics have always been considered as a major opportunity to measure our progress,” added Rapatel. “We have a well prepared team, a talented group of Canadian and international coaches and staff, as well as athletes who have a track record of success in World Cup and World Championship competition.” In the history of the Paralympic Games the Alpine events won a total of 36 medals. Of those medals, five athletes that are currently on the team are already Paralympic Games medalist, which adds up to a total of 18 medals.
It is expected that Canada will have representation in each alpine event during the Paralympic Winter Games in 2010. The downhill training runs start Wednesday March 10th and the first race will be on Saturday March 13th with the downhill event.
List of 16 alpine athletes nominated to the Canadian Paralympic Committee;
MEN – RESIDENCE (CATEGORIE) / HOMMES – RÉSIDENCE (CATÉGORIE)
Christopher Williamson, Markham ON, B 3Josh Dueck, Vernon BC, LW 11Luke Donovan, Dalhousie NB, LW 11Matthew Hallat, Whistler BC, LW 2Morgan Perrin, Whistler BC, LW 3/2Nicholas Brush, Panorama BC, GuideJeff Dickson, Sudbury, ON, LW 9-2Kirk Schornstein, Edmonton, AB, LW 6/8-2Sam Danniels, Whistler, BC, LW 10/1
LADIES - RESIDENCE (CATEGORIE) / DAMES – RÉSIDENCES (CATÉGORIE)
Andrea Dziewior, Nanaimo BC, LW 2Arly Fogarty, Montreal QC, LW 5/7-
2Karolina Wisniewska, Vancouver BC, LW 3/2Kimberly Joines Rossland, BC, LW 11Lauren Woolstencroft, North Vancouver BC, LW 3/1Lindsay Debou, Whistler, BC, GuideMelanie Schwartz, Toronto, ON, LW 2Viviane Forest, Edmonton AB, B 2
