Canada’s Para alpine skiers overcome injury challenges in Paralympic Games preparation

CALGARY – Injuries are a fact of life in the sport of alpine skiing. It’s no secret that these daredevils are regarded among the most courageous athletes in the world.

The top Para alpine skiers in the world can attain speeds beyond 100 kilometres an hour. In the visually impaired category, racers are following their incredible guides who must not falter at top speed. In the standing events, the competitors are negotiating the epic hills in places like the European Alps on prosthetic legs or with one pole, while the sit skiers are strapped to a molded luge swerving and curving like F1 racers except it’s on ice and snow.

This week the Para alpine World Cup season gets underway in Steinach, Austria, the first of three stops on the circuit in December. These events will be a major test for the Canadian team with some of its best athletes overcoming injuries since the last Paralympic Winter Games in 2022.

The first stop is this Wednesday to Friday with two Super-G races and a combined. The second stop is a double downhill December 15-17 in Santa Caterina, Italy and then there is a double giant slalom and one slalom December 19-21 in St. Moritz, Switzerland.

Among those on the comeback trail is two-time Paralympian Mollie Jepsen of West Vancouver. A six-time Games medallist, she has struggled with injuries in between both her first and second Games and since 2022.

After a double medal performance in Beijing, knee surgeries kept her out of the following three seasons. Jepsen was scheduled to return earlier in 2024-25 but that October she broke her elbow and her wrist, her first fracture injuries.

She made a triumphant return to the slopes this past March, winning bronze in the women’s standing giant slalom at the World Cup finals in Veysonnaz, Switzerland. Now she hopes she can stay healthy leading up to and at Milano Cortina in March.

‘’I’m happy to be injury and pain free,’’ said Jepsen in an interview with CPC at Alpine Canada’s offices last month. ‘’I’ve been struggling with injuries for so long. It was awesome to squeak those races in the spring, and I was super happy with how I was able to show up and ski and get back in the podium.

‘’All things are all green lights and I’m going full gas.’’

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Michaela Gosselin of Collingwood, Ont., a 2022 Paralympian and a rising star in the women’s standing event, injured her knee after the Beijing Games and only returned last season. She produced strong results with eight medals including double gold in downhill at a stop in Italy.  

‘’I had a whole month in Chile this summer with 25 days on snow in perfect conditions which is unheard of for the pre-season,’’ said Gosselin, whose father Brian was a national team member in the days of the Crazy Canucks. ‘’I’m feeling strong and happy with my skiing and I’m healthy for once.

‘’It was such a relief to have the whole summer where I wasn’t rehabbing and to just get stronger instead of trying to heal.’’

Veteran Kurt Oatway of Calgary, the men’s sit skiing downhill Games champion in 2018, was diagnosed with a shoulder injury after crashing at the 2022 World Championships, just weeks before the Beijing Games. He was unable to compete at what would have been his second Paralympic Games.

There was never any doubt in his mind he could return to top form – and what a comeback it has been. Oatway has re-emerged as a medal threat in the sitting events, especially downhill and super-G.

The 41-year-old delivered one of the best seasons of his career in 2024-25 with nine World Cup medals including three victories.

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‘’I try to remember the past successes and forget the failures and just move forward,’’ said Oatway, also the athlete representative on the Alpine Canada Board. ‘’I’ve been injured before but that one in 2022 was tough. It was a lot of physio, rehab and dedication in the gym.’’

And in what may be one of the great quotes for athletes in risky sports he added: ‘’If you’re just hurting at the end of the day, it means you’re still alive.’’

Besides Jepsen, Gosselin, and Oatway, Canada can unleash even more firepower on the slopes.

Co-captain of the Canadian Paralympic Team Alexis Guimond of Gatineau, Que. is a two-time Paralympian. Over the past eight years, the 26-year-old has been a steady podium presence at World Cups, world championships, and the Paralympic Games. In 2024-25, Guimond pocketed three bronze and four silver medals. 

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The new stars on the block are Kalle Eriksson of Kimberley, B.C. and his guide Sierra Smith of Ottawa in the visually impaired events. This past season they ranked third overall in giant slalom, with two victories and multiple podiums. They were also double medallists at the world championships in March.

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Jepsen, Guimond and Gosselin are scheduled to race at the season opener then more Canadians are expected to join them for the following World Cups.

There are five other stops on the Para alpine circuit before the Games: January 12-17 in Saalbach, Austria; January 22-23 in Feldberg, Germany; January 26-30 in Meribel, France; February 2-6 in Tignes, France; and February 9-10 in Veysonnaz, Switzerland.

At the Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games, Para alpine skiing will be contested at the Tofane Alpine Skiing Centre in Cortina d’Ampezzo, located in the beautiful Dolomite mountains.

The current schedule will see the downhill kicking off competition on March 7, followed by the super-G on March 9, alpine combined on March 10, giant slalom on March 12 (women) and March 13 (men), and slalom on March 14 (women) and March 15 (men).