德鲁·谢伊搬到帕克城的时候, 犹他州, in October 2020 to train full time with Team Soldier Hollow, 越野滑雪俱乐部，由滑雪运动员和两项运动员组成, he didn't know that just two years later he would earn himself a spot on the 2022 U.S. 残奥会北欧滑雪队.
谢伊是代表美国代表团的两名运动员之一.S.A. at the 2022 Beijing Paralympic Games with ties to 犹他州 and 小径, U of U Health's adaptive sports and recreation program.
In 2019, Shea had to have his left hand amputated due to an accident. 后不久, he began skiing as a way to get back into sports and was introduced to Tanja Kari, 12次残奥会越野滑雪奖牌得主 落后于计划 导演.
“在我出事之后, I got connected to the Para Nordic skiing world and ended up meeting Tanja at the Soldier Hollow Nordic Center谢伊说. "She offered to give me some lessons and introduce me more to the sport. She was a huge pull for me to get more serious about skiing. 她是一名出色的滑雪运动员和老师."
卡莉是一名残奥会运动员和金牌得主. She represented her home country of Finland in cross country skiing from 1992-2002, retiring from competition after the 2002 Salt Lake City Paralympic Games. 2010年温哥华残奥会上, Kari was inducted into the Paralympic Hall of Fame for her incredible personal achievements and contributions to the sport of cross-country skiing.
Kari加入了uu of U Health 克雷格·H. 尼尔森康复医院 2005年担任 小径, which stands for Technology, Recreation, Access, Independence, Lifestyle, and Sports. 小径 was founded in 2001 and focuses on the recreation, 健康, and education needs of people with complex physical disabilities. 除了她在适应性运动方面的工作, Kari is an active technical classifier for the International Paralympic Committee for Para Nordic Skiing.
最重要的是, Kari has been working with athletes of all levels for more than 20 years and is no stranger to inspiring up-and-coming skiers.
“你.S. Para Nordic coaching team asked me to meet with Drew and work with him while he was in 犹他州 at a development camp,Kari说. “你.S. Para Nordic community knows my background and they know that I'm here, and it was a natural match when they decided to connect us."
Kari first started working with Shea on his technical skills.
“在某种程度上，大发娱乐是从零开始的，”Kari说. “大发娱乐就此谈了很多. 但我告诉他，如果他致力于这项运动, 他会有很多机会等着他."
谢伊的承诺已经得到了回报. Originally from Vienna, Virginia, Shea graduated from the University of South Carolina in 2020. 在帕克城度过了冬训之后, 他搬到了波兹曼, 蒙大拿, 离北欧残疾人滑雪队更近.
Shea is excited to be competing in the individual freestyle skiing and biathlon events in Beijing.
“当我踏上这段旅程的时候, I always had it in the back of my head that I wanted to make it to the Paralympics and represent Team U.S.A.谢伊说. "I definitely have some work to do, but this is an awesome accomplishment for me. 我再高兴不过了."
Shea's teammate, Dani Aravich, is another Paralympian competing in Beijing with ties to 犹他州. 原产于博伊西, 爱达荷州, Aravich moved to 犹他州 after graduating from Butler University in 印第安纳州polis, 印第安纳州, where she was a collegiate runner competing in cross country and track and field.
阿拉维奇出生时没有左手和前臂. Initially, her aspirations for the Paralympic Games only included the summer edition. But while she was training full-time for the 2020 Tokyo Paralympic Games, she was introduced to one of the developmental coaches for the U.S.A. 残奥会北欧滑雪队.
"I was invited to a ski clinic in Colorado in December 2019,阿拉维奇说. “我决定去, 没想太多, but by the end of the camp I realized I really enjoy skiing and I wanted to get good at it."
就在科罗拉多诊所的几周后, Aravich was invited to compete at the Nordic Skiing National Championships, 在士兵谷举行.
"Even though I was new to skiing, I decided to compete,阿拉维奇说. “就在那时，我遇到了Tanja Kari."
Just as she did with Shea, Kari worked with Aravich on her skiing, coaching her on the basics.
“Tanja和我每周会见面一次去滑雪, 她会大发娱乐我提高我的技巧,阿拉维奇说. “这真的让人耳目一新. 她是我见到的第一个单臂滑雪的人."
Aravich continued to ski with Kari and also participated in the 落后于计划 在大发娱乐. 当2020年东京残奥会被推迟时, 阿拉维奇充分利用了额外的训练时间, 专注于田径和滑雪.
"I joined the club biathlon team at Soldier Hollow and was practicing with them, 同时也训练田径,阿拉维奇说. "I was then invited to go up to Bozeman more permanently and started training more for skiing, 除了跑步."
阿拉维奇入选2020年东京奥运会.S. Paralympic Track and Field team, competing in the individual 400-meter run.
现在, 仅仅一年之后, Aravich is heading off to compete in the individual biathlon and cross-country skiing events at the 2022 Paralympic Games. While she is just getting to know her new sport, Aravich is excited for what the future holds.
"I've had to progress extremely fast to get to the level I'm at with skiing, 对此我非常感激,阿拉维奇说. "They say it takes about four years to truly learn to cross-country ski, so it's a milestone for me just to have qualified for the games this year."
当谈到把金牌带回家的时候, 银, 或青铜, both Shea and Aravich don't see that as a goal for the 2022 Games.
"Both Drew and I see Beijing as a stepping stone in a longer-term career,阿拉维奇说. "With our ages and the relatively short amount of time we have spent skiing, we both know there are many more years of competition—and Paralympic Games—to come. We have already had some pretty amazing success and know there is an even brighter future ahead."
For Kari, she couldn't be happier to see both Aravich and Shea succeed.
"When I meet with young athletes like Dani and Drew, I find amazing potential,Kari说. “他们全身心投入，热爱自己的工作. 这并不意味着每天都感觉很好. 有时候感觉很糟糕，有时候感觉很轻松. 整体, if you fall in love with what you do—even when it's challenging—that's when you see amazing results."