Para Sport Collective intake two member Thomas Coysh harbours some big ambitions on the slopes. We catch up with the vision impaired Para alpine skier to find out more about his incredible story.
No challenge is too ambitious for Thomas Coysh. Despite a vision impairment, the 25-year-old has sailed across an ocean and completed Outward Bound courses but perhaps it is his upwardly mobile Para alpine skiing where the disability rights advocate most catches the eye.
As “The Blind Skiwi” has proven by hurtling down mountains at speeds of up to 80kmh, nothing is impossible.
Raised on a small farm near Pukekohe south of Auckland, Thomas enjoyed an outdoors upbringing. His family always encouraged him to get into sport and supported any goals that he and his siblings had. The youngest of four children, Thomas recalls riding his dirt bike around the farm and he enjoyed “throwing himself around in the mud” as a goalkeeper for Pukekohe AFC in his youth.
At the age of 11, however, he first identified an issue with his vision which was diagnosed as rod cone retinal dystrophy – a degenerative condition that leads to progressive vision loss and eventual blindness.
“I have two older sisters with the genetic condition, so there was always a chance I would get it too,” explains Thomas.
His vision continued to fade through his early teens and at the age of 16 – and struggling to see the ball in the air – he took the tough decision to quit football. Describing this as “a kick in the guts” he maintained his fitness by running and going to the gym. Yet the new form of exercise did not sate his appetite.
“I loved throwing myself around the pitch as a goalkeeper and I enjoyed that feeling of movement on the dirt bike,” he explains. “I didn’t get that same sensation in the gym.”
Leaving school a year early to begin a degree in Geography and Earth Science, his vision
“severely started to tank” aged 18 and consequently he took a break from university.
Feeling “extremely lost” he said Blind Low Vision NZ and Outward Bound organised for a group of individuals with vision impairments to experience an outdoor development camp. It proved a turning point.
“It instilled in me a love of sailing, as I can know the direction of the wind by feeling it on my face, and how to adjust the ropes by hearing the flapping of the sails – the only position that I was not very good at was the lookout! I came to the realisation that almost anything was possible if you put your mind to it, so on the last day I challenged myself to return to Outward Bound to complete the standard 21-day course, and to travel the world.”
Excited by his newfound passion and filled with renewed confidence he later embarked on a disability voyage with, and then went on to volunteer for, the Spirit of Adventure Trust – a youth development programme in which people are given the opportunity to sail to gain life experience.
“Completing the Outward Bound course and sailing with the Spirit of Adventure proved to me that blindness does not have to stop me from being more physically active.”
He was introduced to adaptive sport through Blind Sport NZ. Thomas tasted several sports including Para cycling, Shooting Para sport, and Para canoe, but he became really enthused when Disability Sport Auckland made him aware of a “Have a Go” Para alpine skiing day at Snow Planet.
Having experienced a few ski trips to Mt Ruapehu in his youth, Para alpine skiing held a natural attraction.
“I loved the adrenaline rush of being on the snow” he explains. “What I also learned through my vision impairment is skiing is very tactile. I can feel through my feet what angle I am on the snow and how steep it is. I am very responsive to this. Additionally, when I’m running, I am tethered to someone, or if cycling I am behind the pilot on a tandem. With skiing, I have that greater feeling of freedom, where I am completely unattached from the person guiding me.”
Buoyed by the experience he was convinced to sign up for the Adaptive Snowsports Festival in Queenstown later in 2021. Back on the mountain he found it difficult to hear his guide because of the sound of the ice and the wind. However, fitted with a Bluetooth headset enabled Thomas to clearly hear his guide – who skis down the course with the vision impaired Para athlete – which helped build confidence.
“I knew at that point that this was my sport and that I wanted to compete at a Paralympic Games,” he said.
Yet his progression on the slopes was placed on hold after New Zealand was plunged into another lockdown during the global pandemic. He instead applied as crew to a tall ship heading to America but because of his impairment the captain saw the Kiwi as too much of a risk and declined his application.
Disheartened, Thomas chatted to his mum, Ruth. “I never realised up until this point that she too had a love for sailing when she was younger. She encouraged me to continue pursuing my dreams of sailing across an ocean, as well as following my other ambitions.”
Tragically, Thomas’ mum passed away unexpectedly a couple weeks following this conversation in late-2021 but Thomas vowed to follow his dreams in her memory.
“Mum was always super supportive and extremely caring,” recalls Thomas. “It was not easy for her to be a mother to three blind kids. She was a real powerhouse.”
Inspired by his mum’s can-do attitude to life he took on a six-month overseas experience, which included sailing across the Atlantic Ocean and a period skiing with Rocky Mountain Adaptive (RMA) in Banff, Canada. On his return, he relocated to the South Island – with a view to ski more regularly.
Eventually settling in Methven, he began Para alpine skiing three times a week with Adaptive Snowsports Canterbury (ASC), but with a desire to ski more frequently, he posted on Facebook to see if anyone would be willing to guide the vision impaired skier. ASC volunteer ski guides John Nicholas and his son, Kennen, stepped forward to fulfil the role and after gaining support from ASC to do so, the duo have massively contributed to his progression.
John identified a need for Thomas to be put on longer, sturdier skis, so he lent the budding Para athlete some of his own. The switch led to immediate technical improvements, and they continued to progress during an advanced programme with RMA in Canada.
During his second time in Banff, his progression was propelled by the usage of high-quality equipment generously donated by the New Zealand manufacture of C6 Skis.
John takes Thomas recreationally skiing, whereas Kennen is now Thomas’s race partner – a massive commitment for the 16-year-old. Their relationship on the snow is critical for Thomas, and as his race partner, Kennen, who was also invited to become a member of the second intake of the Paralympics New Zealand (PNZ) Para Sport Collective, which is presented with the support of ACC.
“My life is in their hands, so there needs to be total trust,” he explains. “At the speeds we travel at, if there is an accident there is a chance I could be severely injured or even killed. The guide needs to have a clear voice and be decisive in their communication.”
Thomas’s commitment to Para alpine skiing is real. In the past two years, he has spent the majority of his time living in hostels, a campervan, and even a stint in a yurt with his two guides to save costs and devote as much time as possible to spending time on the snow.
Believing he has good natural balance honed during his days as a goalkeeper and an appreciation of moving at speed from riding his dirt bike, he is currently embarking on a key training period with the US Para ski squad in Winter Park, Colorado.
Hoping to be internationally classified later this year and training four days a week on snow with two gym sessions per week when back in Aotearoa New Zealand, the next step for Thomas is to finally launch his competitive Para alpine skiing career.
“It depends how my training goes but all going well I could try a race while I’m at Winter Park or maybe later this year,” he says.
Accepted as part of the second intake of the PNZ Para Sport Collective, he has described his experiences so far as “awesome.”
“To be able to meet Para athletes from other Para sports with other disabilities has been amazing,” he explains.
“We’ve built a bit of a family between us, and we share ideas. To learn what it takes to become a high performance Para athlete is amazingly important.”
Thomas hopes in future to be able to implement these learnings into his performance planning, and his role as a part-time Events and Project Coordinator for Achilles NZ – which provides New Zealanders with any disability the opportunity to participate in local, national, and international events. He has some big ambitions for the future.
“My personal aspirations are to get to the Paralympic Games and podium, but in the longer term I want to improve the visibility of adaptive skiing and adaptive sports in general” explains Thomas, a Board member of Blind Sport NZ. “I didn’t know about adaptive sport for a long time, and I don’t want that to be the experience of others.”
If you would like to find out more about Para alpine skiing go here
