Ciao and greetings from Italy!
With no competition action today for the NZ Paralympic Team, I was able to head out and see the Para snowboard cross competition at the Cortina Snowboard Park. Paralympian #189 Carl Murphy PLY is the only Para snowboard athlete to represent the NZ Paralympic Team so far, competing at Sochi 2014 (with a 4th place finish) and PyeongChang 2018 (with a 5th and a 6th place), but we are hopeful to see a future Paralympian selected to compete in the Para snowboard at either of the next Winter Paralympic Games – in the French Alps 2030 or Salt Lake Utah 2034.
The Para snowboard cross event pits four racers against each other in an elimination style, with the top two from each race progressing to the next round – ultimately seeing four racers competing for the three Paralympic medals on offer in each classification. Paralympic champions were crowned representing China (two), France, and the greatest roar from the crowd was for Emanuel Perathoner from host nation Italy!
I enjoyed being in amongst the spectators from other nations cheering on their Paralympians, and in the process, observe the unique environments and some of the challenges posed by hosting a Winter Paralympic Games, compared to a Summer Paralympic Games. Snow is the obvious factor, but when you include elevation, temperature, and wind, accessibility conditions are not only difficult for competitors, but also for the spectators seeking to find viewing vantage points to catch a glimpse of their family, friends, or country’s representatives.
Racers progressing to the next stage of each race, get an express ride back up the mountain to the start areas, on the back of a variety of snowmobiles, with their snowboard in hands – much to the delight of their supporters, who get to see them whizzing by, and send final words of encouragement and support ahead of the next race start.
Safety is a key factor of the Paralympic Winter Games, especially with the speeds that the Paralympians are travelling across the snow. In the Para snowboard cross, there is also a high likelihood of racers crashing out, either individually or with other racers, and as such, ensuring that the course includes a number of safety features is important. Almost consider the course design like that of a Formula 1 course; instead of concrete barriers and metal screens, there are inflatable padding and net barriers, all to catch and support anyone crashing out.
In between each race, there is an army of volunteers on skis or snowboards, following the Paralympians down the course to effectively smooth the edges that have been left by the boards (or skis for alpine), before they quickly exit the course, continue to the base of the run, and then ride the chairlift back up to the top, ready for their next job smoothing the course. Another mid-event role is that of the line markers, who journey down the entire course on skis, to reapply the blue paint that depicts the edges of the racing lines – which also acts as another safety feature to keep racers within the course, and as it has been designed for racing.
Competition resumes on Day 3 of the Games (Monday) with Paralympian #188 Corey Peters MNZM back on the snow, with all the action covered on TVNZ Duke and TVNZ+, and more content covering the Games and NZ Paralympic Team across various channels that is all #WorthTalkingAbout.
