National Ski Team Background: Mark Arendz carried the Canadian flag into the Closing Ceremonies of the 2018 Paralympic Winter Games following a historic six-medal performance where he reached the podium in every event he started. Mark set a record for winning the most medals by a Winter Paralympian in one Games with his first Paralympic gold, two silvers and three bronze. Mark continued his torrid pace in 2019 with a six-medal haul at the World Para-Nordic Ski...
National Ski Team Background: Collin Cameron won three bronze medals in each of his first two trips to the Paralympic Games in 2018 and 2022. At Beijing 2022, Collin became the first Canadian male sit-skier to reach the Paralympic podium in a cross-country distance race when he finished third. Building on a breakthrough season in 2018, Collin battled through illness to claim his first World Para Nordic Skiing Championship title, when he won the sprint event in...
National Ski Team Background: Cross-country skiing wasn’t even on Derek’s radar seven years ago when he was first introduced to the sport. He progressed through the development pathway with ups and downs along the way. A triple medal performance at the Canada Games in 2015 (one gold, two silver), gave Derek the belief he could represent Canada in the sport internationally. After years of hard work and commitment he finally made his way onto the National Team in...
National Ski Team Background: Entering her second year on the National Para-Nordic Ski Develompent Team, Lyne-Marie has been making steady progression while developing through the national program. Introduction to Cross-Country Skiing: Lyne-Marie first got involved in cross-country skiing after deciding to follow her older brother into the sport. She immediately fell in love clipping into a pair of skis and the competition within the sport. After attending...
Background: Being a fan of the “Great Outdoors”, cross-country skiing was a natural fit for Jesse from day one. In 2015, at the age of 16, a local Kenora ski coach introduced him to his first experience on” skinny skis”, and he knew he was hooked! He skied his first race as an able-bodied competitor with his then coach/guide, Pam McDonald, at a local Manitoba race. Soon after Jesse joined the Manitoba Provincial Team as the only para athlete. In that first season...
