Cory braved some extremely cold temperatures last week at Sun Peaks, as he continues his preparations for Special Olympics' National Winter Games in Calgary on February 27 to March 2.

Cory's first run through a race course this season....

And later, an uncharacteristic crash.  He'd been working on something new and it didn't quite go as planned...

 

 It was BC Adaptive's All Mountain Camp, one of Cory's favourite training programs.  It's usually 4 days, with mornings dedicated to gate training, and afternoons to free skiing with coaches.  But under these conditions, day 2 is cancelled.  So it's an indoor training day, watching videos.

Day 3 is just as cold and another cancellation.  But Cory decides to go and try to at least get some skiing in - the snow is in excellent condition after all.  And it pays off, as we discover Sun Peaks Racers are setting up a Giant Slalom race course on the OSV run at the Nancy Greene International Race Centre.

We politely explain about the cancellation, and ask the Racers' coaches if Cory could do a few runs in their course, and they say "sure!".  And what a course it was, 42 gates, and Cory manages to put in 5 runs through it for a really good day of training, considering the extreme cold.

Cory with Frost Tape, to protect against frostbite.

Then on the last day, temperatures moderated slightly, so it's a go for BC Adaptive to set a series of race courses on OSV, a total of about 60 gates.  Again, Cory manages to get in 5 or 6 runs, around 300 or so gate turns, which is a great day in ideal conditions, a terrific day of training in such cold temperatures.

Cory will now continue with his weekly Special Olympics ski program at Cypress and look for more gate training opportunities elsewhere as well.  We'll update again soon.

 Cory was invited to speak once again, this time at the Sports Celebrities Festival in support of Special Olympics British Columbia.

It was a memorable evening, Cory did a great job and the audience seemed to enjoy it with laughter and applause.  The event raised over $440,000 for SOBC.

Cory's preparations for the 2024 National Games will soon move from dryland training to being on snow, with 4 days of gate training planned for mid-January at Sun Peaks, as well as our weekly sessions at Cypress beginning early next month.

In the meantime, enjoy his speech.

 

Cory was invited to speak at a Special Olympics fundraiser at the Mayfair Golf Club in Richmond on June 15,2023. His speech was a big hit with plenty of laughs and applause and he helped raise over $60,000 for SOBC.

 

 It is official - Cory has qualified for his fourth consecutive Special Olympics Canada National 
Winter Games, to be held in Calgary next February!

The Games also serve as the qualifier event for the 2025 World Winter Games, to be held in Turin, Italy.

While waiting for that good news, Cory participated in BC Adaptive's All Mountain Camp at Sunshine Village, near Banff, Alberta, - a four-day camp featuring gate training and free skiing.  It's an excellent combination of training and fun skiing, in a spectacular and still wintry setting:

This camp is for everyone....

Working with Alpine Canada Coach Mark:

Ready to Go!

Sitting in his Special Olympics 2023 Provincial Winter Games souvenir shirt, our last day at Banff Sunshine is likely Cory's last day of this unforgettable season.  Training for Calgary 2024 can wait...

This eventful ski season isn't quite over for Cory yet. Last week, he participated in the Canadian Adaptive Snowsports (CADS) Annual Festival in Kimberley, BC. Under sunny blue skies, Cory did some gate training in the mornings for 4 days in a row, with free skiing in the afternoons, plus a final full day of free skiing. It's a format that Cory really enjoys - a good combination of work and fun - and it's an event that he has been attending since 2014, when it's been held in western Canada, as it alternates with Eastern Canadian venues.






While not as large as Whister Blackcomb and Sun Peaks, Kimberley still offers a lot of fun terrain and is rarely crowded, even on weekends. It's one of our favourite places to ski. The race course was on a run called Dreadnaught, the yellow circle here...





We stayed in a rented condo at the base of the hill, where we may have discovered a good omen. There were several framed prints of ski hills around the world, including one for Sestriere, Italy. If Cory qualifies for Team Canada again next year in Calgary, he will ski for Canada at Special Olympics' World Winter Games 2025 in Sestriere.

Our arrival at Cranbrook airport, plenty of sun and snow in the mountain peaks...

In full Special Olympics Team Canada uniform for this week...

And proudly showing the telltale signs of taking tight lines through the race course, hitting gates with his forearms as he races by them....

Time for lunch...

Hungry athlete...

Next month, there is BC Adaptive's All Mountain Camp - a similar format to the CADS Festival - in Banff. Cory hasn't decided yet whether he will attend.

 We are now well into year two of the current 4 year Special Olympics cycle.  Cory just competed in Special Olympics British Columbia's Provincial Winter Games at Sun Peaks.

But for a few days, it didn't look like he would be able to compete at all.  With the Games looming in early February, back in mid-January one of Cory's training team mates crashed into him, resulting in a diagnosis of broken ribs.  No skiing for 6 weeks.  It was a devastating development, he'd have to wait another 4 years until the next Provincial Games to try to make it to Team Canada again.

A few days later, an x-ray showed bruised ribs, not broken.  Painful but not dangerous to resume skiing.  But no gate training.

So Cory would get a chance to qualify for the 2024 National Games, but would likely have to race in pain.

Then on the morning of the first race at Sun Peaks, an emergency medical issue required his father be transferred to hospital in Kamloops.

In spite of it all, Cory raced to 3 silver medals, one each in Slalom, Giant Slalom, and Super Giant Slalom.  Truly his most golden moment.  Racing with no training, in pain, and worry about his father..

He was also able to walk into the Opening Ceremonies in Kamloops with his fellow BC members of Team Canada 2022.  The Team never got the opportunity to do that at the Worlds in Russia as they were cancelled so it was a great moment to see the Team walk in to loud applause.

With his local team mates, two of whom were also on Team Canada...

on the podium in Giant Slalom...

podium in Super Giant Slalom

So now we wait several months to official hear whether Cory has qualified for the National Games next February in Calgary.  Which in turn is the qualifying event for the World Games in Italy in 2025.

But with 24 points from 3 silver medals, there are only two other male skiers with more points, and there are usually 5 or 6 male skiers selected.  It looks good for his 4th consecutive National Games after Jasper in 2012, Newfoundland in 2016, and Thunder Bay in 2020.

Next up is the CADS Festival in Kimberley, BC in March.  Look for an update then.

 It's now August 2022, and with the huge disappointment after the cancellation of the 2023 Special Olympics World Winter Games now behind us, it's time to refocus on the next competitive cycle.

The current cycle started in February 2022, at the Regional competition that was held at Sasquatch Mountain.  As Cory is the only skier from his Region (Delta, Richmond, Burnaby), he was virtually guaranteed to qualify for the 2023 Provincial Winter Games as long as he completed the course without being disqualified for missing a gate.

So he was cautious and yet finished second behind a new young skier but was still over 3 seconds faster than his long-time rival in each of his two runs.  We should know very soon if Cory has officially qualified for the Provincial Games in Kamloops and Sun Peaks next February.

he didn't miss that gate but sure gave it a good shot as he raced by...

It was shortly after that race that Special Olympics announced the cancellation of the World Winter Games.  But Cory still enjoyed some Team Canada 2022 activities and gear.

First of course was his Team Canada 2022 long-sleeved T shirt which he has been very proud to wear...

And then a Team Canada 2022 gathering in Toronto.  Cory is in front of the round column at the back on the left, wearing a blue mask.  These are Team Canada athletes from all sports:  Alpine Skiing, Snowshoeing, Speed Skating, Figure Skating, and Cross-Country Skiing...all wearing red Team Canada 2022 short-sleeved T Shirts...

And now with coaches and mission staff in their Team Canada 2022 grey hoodies....Cory is waving at us from inside the yellow circle...

And now with the Alpine Ski Team, Cory is at the back, fifth from the right...

And again with the entire team, Cory giving us a two-handed wave from the yellow circle....

And while there was no opportunity to race for a medal for Canada, there is a medal now on Cory's trophy wall....

And while there will be no official Team Canada 2022 race suit, several members of the Alpine Ski Team opted to purchase their own, and they will proudly wear these wherever they train and race beginning next season.  Look for an update soon with photos of Cory wearing his as they are expected to arrive within the next couple of weeks...

The rear view will actually look like the 2nd photo, with a large red maple leaf on the back, instead of just "Canada" there...yellow is the traditional colour of Canada's Olympic and World Cup ski team.

But it hasn't been all fun and games for Cory over the last few weeks.  After recovering from cancer in 2019, then a diagnosis of Ankylosing Spondilitis in 2021, he has had to deal with a rare but very painful reaction to the medication he takes for AS.  

Physical activity is certainly on hold as he deals with this, while we all hope recovery will come soon and we will start planning some dryland training and some travel to Banff for early season on-snow training in late November and early December.

That will be part of his preparation for the Provincial Winter Games on February 3 & 4, which are in the 2nd year of the cycle and the qualifying event for the National Games in Calgary in 2024.  Cory will be gunning for his 4th consecutive National Winter Games (Edmonton & Jasper 2012, Corner Brook & Marble Mountain 2016, Thunder Bay & Loch Lomond Ski Area in 2020) where he will attempt to qualify for Team Canada 2025, and another chance to represent his country, this time in Turin, Italy in 2025.

Look for more updates as we approach the ski season.

 Much has happened since our last post back in April.

First, Special Olympics have postponed the World Winter Games scheduled for January 2022 to January 2023, still to be held in Kazan, Russia.

And, we finally received a diagnosis about the pain that Cory has been experiencing for almost 2 years.  It's a condition called Ankylosing Spondilitis.  It is an inflammation of the joints, usually in the spine, is chronic and has no cure.  With a diagnosis came a recommended medication, which has made a big difference in pain levels and frequency.  

So the good thing is Cory now has more time to slowly get back into sports activities with the Games pushed back to 2023.

We also discovered a terrific ski simulator in North Vancouver so when Cory is ready to go back to training, that will be an excellent tool to improve his racing skills.  He did use it a few times before the pain got just too much.

Here back in June:

More recently it's been biking, bowling, and softball, mostly with no pain but some times with a considerable amount of pain.

With winter coming fast, we will update more often.  A well-earned vacation in Mexico in November, then we will go watch the world's best female skiers race at Lake Louise in December.  Snow should start falling soon thereafter.  And likely some simulator training before then.

Not much training, lots of pain

Kazan, Russia - the location of Special Olympics' World Winter Games in January 2022 - is just over 800 kms east of Moscow. It is on the Volga River, at a similar latitude to James Bay in Canada. It is Russia's 5th largest city, with about 1.5 million residents and is the capital of Tatarstan region. It is considered as the sports capital of Russia, having hosted some of the 2018 World Cup soccer games, and the 2015 World Aquatics Championships. The Kazan Kremlin - seen below - is a UNESCO heritage site.

The Opening and Closing Ceremonies - to be held on January 22 & 28, 2022 - will be held in Tatneft Arena, which has a capacity of about 10,000, and is the home of AK Kazan, the professional hockey club.

With the Covid situation, we have limited safe opportunities to ski but Cory did enjoy a beautiful West Coast day at Cypress, his home mountain, in late March.

But it seems he's spending more time with doctors than skiing while he still battles foot and hip pain. Here with his chiropractor:

We are hoping that the pain will finally be gone by summer time when Cory hopes to train with Whistler Mountain Ski Club - if Whister Blackcomb is allowed to reopen by then.

In the meantime, there is daily reporting to Special Olympics Canada to be done. Physical activity and nutrition intake every day...and yes Cory does walk about 23,000 steps when he works, usually 3 days a week. Sure doesn't help the foot pain...

We will update with progress on Cory's preparations for the World Winter Games.

 

Cory will ski for Canada in Kazan, Russia in January 2022, at Special Olympics' World Winter Games.  Dreams do come true!

After 15 years of hard work and commitment to his sport with hopes of representing Canada one day, Special Olympics Canada has announced its Team Canada 2022 and Cory is on it!

At his 3rd National Games last February, Cory earned 3 Gold Medals, giving him the maximum number of points possible, and paving the way for his selection to the team.

The Kazan Games will host 107 nations, over 2000 athletes, over 7 days of competition in 7 sports.

Here he is in his first Team Canada gear:

Here's a link to the Games official website:

www.sokazan2022.com

Stay tuned for regular updates on Cory's preparations to compete at his best for Canada!