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Biography
Impairment information
Type of Impairment
Spinal Cord Injuries
Origin of Impairment
Acquired
Classification
LW11.5
Further personal information
Family
Wife Sarah, twins Rileigh and Ethan, daughter Keelie
Residence
Rathdrum, ID, USA
Occupation
Athlete, Veteran
Languages
English
Higher education
Anthropology, Psychology - Washington State University: Pullman, WA, USA
Sport specific information
When and where did you begin this sport?
He took up the sport in 2001 after attending a Veterans Administration Winter Sports clinic in Aspen, CO, United States of America. He had already tried skiing before his injuries.
Why this sport?
He has always been active and did not want to lose sports from his life after his accident. He attended the Veterans Winter Sports Clinic, and was inspired by people with more severe injuries than his. "You can't put a value on how much it helped me to see somebody else do that. I was like, 'That's gonna be me'. I was an alpine skier before, racing alpine just isn't my thing. I just wasn't getting that exertion that I used to get. For me it was just a natural fit to come to Nordic skiing. It just fit everything I wanted."
Club / Team
Spokane Nordic: United States
Name of coach
BethAnn Chamberlain, USA, from 2016
International debut
Year
2005
Competing for
United States
General interest
Nicknames
Phantom [from his time in the air force where his colleagues said he had the ability to blend in to any situation without anyone noticing]. (spokesman.com, 25 Dec 2009)
Hobbies
Para ice hockey, handcycling, swimming, downhill skiing. (teamusa.org, 01 Jun 2017)
Most influential person in career
US Para cross-country skier Greg Mallory. (Athlete, 29 Mar 2018)
Hero / Idol
US ice hockey player Pat LaFontaine. (Athlete, 29 Mar 2018)
Sporting philosophy / motto
"All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us." [J. R. R. Tolkien]. (teamusa.org, 01 Jun 2017)
Other sports
He competed in able-bodied rowing at university level in the United States of America. (teamusa.org, Feb 2015)
Impairment
In 1998 he was taking part in a search and rescue training exercise while serving with the US Air Force. He fell 40 feet from the fast rope of a hovering helicopter and broke the L1 vertebra in his back. He was paralysed from the waist down. (Athlete, 29 Mar 2018; teamusa.org, 01 Feb 2015; spokesman.com, 25 Dec 2009)
Results
| Unit | Date | Rank |
|---|
| Event | Medal | Unit | Date | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Men's 1 km Sprint Sitting | Qualification | 10 | ||
| Men's 10 km Sitting | Final Round | 7 | ||
| Men's 15 km Sitting | Final Round | 9 |
| Event | Medal | Unit | Date | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Men's Sprint - Classic Sitting | Final | 2013-02-25 | 18 | |
| Men's Long Distance - Classic Sitting | Final | 2013-02-26 | 17 | |
| Men's Short Distance Sitting | Final | 2013-02-28 | 24 | |
| Men's Middle Distance Sitting | Final | 2013-03-01 | 22 | |
| Men's Long Distance Sitting | Final | 2013-03-03 | 17 | |
| Men's Middle Distance - Classic Sitting | Final | 2013-03-05 | 11 |
| Event | Medal | Unit | Date | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Men's 7.5 km Sitting | Final Round | 2014-03-08 | 9999 | |
| Men's 15 km Sitting | Final Round | 2014-03-09 | 9 | |
| Men's 12.5 km Sitting | Final Round | 2014-03-11 | 12 | |
| Men's 1 km Sprint Sitting | Qualification | 2014-03-12 | 17 | |
| Men's 15 km Sitting | Final Round | 2014-03-14 | 11 | |
| Men's 10 km Sitting | Final Round | 2014-03-16 | 16 |
| Event | Medal | Unit | Date | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Men's Long Distance - Free Style Sitting | Race 1 | 2015-01-25 | 10 | |
| Men's Middle Distance Sitting | Race 1 | 2015-01-27 | 15 | |
| Men's Middle Distance - Classic Sitting | Race 1 | 2015-01-31 | 13 |
| Event | Medal | Unit | Date | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Men's 15km Sitting | Final | 2018-03-11 | 22 | |
| Men's 12.5km Sitting | Final | 2018-03-13 | 14 | |
| Men's 1.1km Sprint Sitting | Final | 2018-03-14 | 14 | |
| Men's 7.5km Sitting | Final | 2018-03-17 | 23 | |
| 4x2.5km Open Relay | Final | 2018-03-18 | 12 |