Canadian para alpine skier Kalle Eriksson and guide Sierra Smith secured a silver medal in the men’s visually impaired downhill event, marking Canada’s first podium finish at the Milano-Cortina Paralympics in Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy. The duo completed the race in 1 minute 18.33 seconds at the Tofane Alpine Skiing Centre during their Paralympic debut, expressing immense pride in their performance. Austria’s Johannes Aigner and Nico Haberl clinched the gold medal, finishing 2.25 seconds ahead, while Italy’s Giacomo Bertagnolli and Andrea Ravelli claimed the bronze in 1:18.64.
Eriksson, hailing from Kimberley, B.C., and Smith from Ottawa, have only been a team since 2022. They previously earned silver medals in the slalom and giant slalom at the world championships last year and have amassed 22 World Cup medals over three seasons. The pair communicates using a two-way headset.
In a separate event, sit-skier Kurt Oatway from Calgary earned a bronze medal in the downhill competition for his classification, with a time of 1:19.42. This achievement follows a serious injury at the 2022 Para Snow Sports World Championships, which forced him to miss the Beijing Winter Games.
Natalie Wilkie, a para nordic athlete from Salmon Arm, B.C., secured a silver medal in the women’s standing sprint biathlon, clocking 18:46.4 over the 7.5-kilometer course. Wilkie expressed her joy at achieving this goal early in the Games, finishing behind Ukraine’s Oleksandra Kononova.
Canada’s mixed wheelchair curling team narrowly defeated Italy 9-8 in their opening match, while the Para hockey team cruised to an 8-0 victory against Slovakia. This win marked Canada’s first wheelchair curling victory since 2006 and set a strong start for the Para hockey team in their quest for gold.
Russia also made headlines as para alpine skiers Varvara Voronchikhina and Aleksei Bugaev secured bronze medals in the women’s and men’s downhill standing competitions, marking Russia’s first Paralympic medals since 2014. The Russian athletes returned to competition under their flag after previous bans due to doping violations and geopolitical conflicts.
Despite challenges and setbacks, Canadian para athletes continue to showcase resilience and determination at the Milano-Cortina Paralympics, aiming for further success in the remaining events.