CANMORE – The Canadian Para nordic ski team were shining stars when the world was dark and grim.
With Paris 2024 one year away, the Canadian Paralympic Committee (CPC) recognized its top athletes for the Tokyo 2020 and Beijing 2022 Paralympic Games at the end of August, with a couple well-known Para nordic skiers in the Bow Valley getting their dues.
For winning a trio of gold medals, Canmore’s Brian McKeever won Canada’s best male athlete at Beijing, while Natalie Wilkie, of Salmon Arm, B.C., was named best female athlete for winning two golds, silver and bronze.
With a heightened sense of stress from COVID-19 and devastation when Russia invaded Ukraine in Februrary 2022, the Beijing Winter Paralympic Games were anything but normal.
For Canadian athletes like McKeever, Canada’s greatest winter Paralympian ever, it was his final lap as a competitor. Leading up to Beijing, the Canmore skier knew he had a job to do first; however, he said that once there, it was one of his hardest experiences as an athlete and finding balance from a human side of things.
“After a long career, sometimes it’s not always about athletic achievements,” said McKeever.
“I have friends on the Ukrainian team and we’ve known each other a long time and to see them on the side of the trail and to not shake their hands and give them a hug and share in some of those moments of friendship, in spite of the fact that we were trying to beat each other on the race course, that was the important balance to find. Thanks to our staff for keeping us grounded in those moments.”
Then 42 years old, McKeever became Canada’s greatest winter Paralympian ever after securing a history-making 16th gold and 20 medals in total. The impressive medal count ties for most won by a winter Paralympian with German alpine skier Gerd Schönfelder.
McKeever took first in the men’s vision impaired long distance (20-kilometre) and sprint with guide Russell Kennedy, and in the middle distance (12.5km) with guide Graham Nishikawa.
Following Beijing, McKeever retired from competitive skiing and took the reins of head coach of the Canadian Para nordic ski team.
He praised his teammates and Canadian staff for their professionalism through the Games that were “difficult for everyone.”
"It showed we just had a good team, mature and aware athletes who found a way to make that balance," said McKeever. "There are a lot of leaders on our team who will pass those experiences on to future generations on our team."
Training out of Canmore, the nation’s Para nordic ski team won 14 medals in Beijing, including four each from Wilkie and world champion Mark Arendz.
At only 22 years old and already a seven-time medallist, Wilkie is on pace to pass alpine skier Lana Spreeman, a 13-time medallist (one gold, six silver, six bronze), as the nation’s most decorated female Paralympian.
“It feels pretty special to be recognized for my performance in Beijing, which feels like so long ago, but also like it was yesterday,” said Wilkie in a media release. “Probably my favourite part of my Games experience was the atmosphere of Team Canada. Everyone was so stoked and excited for each other. Whatever performance we had, it was a performance for Canada, and that really united everyone. It was really cool to be a part of.”
In Beijing, Wilkie won gold in the women’s 15km standing and standing sprint, silver in the middle distance, and bronze with Canada’s 4X2.5km mixed relay. Then 21 years old, Wilkie was Canada’s youngest medallist – a feat she also achieved at 2018 PyeongChang at age 17. She won CPC’s best debuting female athlete for the three-medal haul.
After Beijing, Wilkie was invited to throw the ceremonial first pitch at the Toronto Blue Jays’ 2022 home opener, along with Sarah Nurse, Beijing Olympic gold medallist in hockey, at the sold-out Rogers Centre.
Also winning the Beijing 2022 Canadian Paralympic Sport Awards were snowboarders Lisa DeLong and Tyler Turner for best debuting athletes and best team performance went to wheelchair curling.
