Josh Dueck

Canadian Paralympic Hall of Fame member Josh Dueck once said that he feels a responsibility to give back to sport. 

Through the years, the Paralympic champion, professional speaker, and yoga instructor has done that in spades. That commitment to sport was officially crystallized in late 2020 when he was named the Canadian Paralympic Team’s chef de mission for the 2022 Paralympic Winter Games in Beijing.

As an athlete he solidified himself as a star on the Canadian Para alpine ski team in 2014 with a double medal performance at the Paralympic Winter Games in Sochi. Dueck took gold in the super combined and silver in the downhill. He was named Canada’s flag bearer for the Closing Ceremony. 

Dueck is a former freestyle skiing coach who first experienced skiing while on a school field trip in Grade 11. He broke his back in 2004 (his silver in Sochi was won on the 10th anniversary of his accident) when he overshot a demonstration jump.

As an ace sit-skier, he revitalized his career. He also competed at the Vancouver 2010 Paralympic Winter Games, taking silver in the slalom, and collected multiple IPC World Cup podiums. He is the 2009 sit skiing world downhill champion.

In February 2012, he received international acclaim when he became the first sit-skier to perform a backflip on snow – earning him worldwide notoriety and an appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show. The Kimberley, B.C. native has also gone cat-skiing and heli-skiing with his sit-ski. He is a vocal advocate for workplace safety and accessibility in sport, and in 2013 gave a TED Talk about his experiences which has been viewed by thousands on YouTube.

Well-respected for his successful exploits on the hill, Dueck is also a valued member of the international sport community for his work to advance the Paralympic Movement and inspire others to find their paths. Since his retirement from the sport following Sochi, Dueck has continued to be an active and strong voice.  

He is passionate about sharing his story about overcoming odds to make a difference through various speaking engagements, in the hopes of inspiring others to pursue their limits. He and his wife Lacey also provide mentorship for those who have experienced a life-altering injury. Through empowerment, Dueck celebrates growth and healing, and shows what is possible. His personal mantra is that passion plus perseverance equals possibility.

He was a member of the CBC broadcast team on the ground at the PyeongChang 2018 Paralympic Winter Games, bringing the stories of Canada’s Paralympians back home and using his unique insight and expertise to enhance the commentary.

In September 2018, he was named executive director of Freestyle BC where he can directly impact the future of Canada’s freestyle skiers who are similarly vying for international success.  

A Queen’s Diamond Jubilee recipient, Dueck was inducted into the BC Sports Hall of Fame in 2018, which was an evening he will never forget as he was able to celebrate his sports story one more time with his now late parents, Peter and Vickie Dueck.

A year later he was inducted into the Canadian Paralympic Hall of Fame.

Off the slopes, he is a yoga enthusiast and the vice-president of the Live It! Love It! Foundation, which provides outdoor adaptive adventure opportunities for people with disabilities.

He lives in Vernon, B.C. with his wife Lacey and their two children Nova and Hudson.