Skiing
Lessons learned from alpine ski worlds
With less than one year to the Sochi Olympics, athletes and federations and athletes will draw on lessons learned from the alpine ski world championships to prepare for the Games.
Skiing
Alpine ski worlds have been anything but predictable
As the alpine skiing world championships continue in Schladming, Austria, the focus is now squarely on the technical events which entail the slalom and giant slalom. But these worlds have been anything but predictable so far.
Skiing
Expect the unexpected at alpine ski worlds
Too many variables exist in the sport of ski racing to properly predict outcomes, especially at major events like this week's world championships in Schladming, Austria.
Skiing
Kitzbuehel a definite bucket list item
Whether it's unspoken, written, or shared, we all have things we'd like to do and experience. For many professional athletes,
that bucket list includes sporting events like the Masters or Stanley
Cup finals. For Canadian skier Kelly VanderBeek, the famous race in Kitzbuehel, Austria is a must.
Skiing
Smiling because it happened
Canadian skier Kelly VanderBeek announced her retirement from competitive sport on Saturday, but as she moves toward her second life, she writes that she'll take some advice from Dr. Seuss and "not cry because it's over, smile because it happened."
Skiing
St. Anton, Adelboden considered classic ski courses
Kelly VanderBeek of Kitchener, Ont., professes to be proudest of her second-place finish at St. Anton in December 2007 because of the challenging technicalities of the Austrian course.
Skiing
Young Canadian women have skiing star power
With the recent top-10 finishes of Erin Mielzynski, Marie-Michele Gagnon and Britt Phelan in Zagreb, Croatia, CBCSports.ca's Kelly Vanderbeek is ready to pass the torch to the young Canadians.
Skiing
Life lessons from the hill
Many would argue that for something to be a life lesson, it has be hard
to endure and even harder to overcome. If that's the case, then ski
racing (often to its detriment but usually to its benefit) is riddled
with life lessons
Skiing
Canadian World Cup ski team filled with promise
With the World Cup season now well underway, a few things have become apparent. The Canadian men's speed team is looking a lot deeper with Manuel Osborne-Paradis and John Kucera returning from injuries, and Canada's women's technical team has shown incredible promise so far.
Skiing
Lindsey Vonn vs. the men is great for skiing
If the "Tiger Woods Effect" can increase ratings for a golf tournament
in which he's pushing for the title by 30-50 percent in some estimates,
then what is the potential "Lindsey Vonn Effect" if she's allowed to
race the men's downhill at Lake Louise?Everyone has an opinion. And, no surprise, so do I.
David Ford: Whitewater trailblazer
David Ford's career has blazed a new trail in the sport of whitewater
kayaking. He often talks of his motivation coming from once being told a
Canadian would never, and could never, be a world champion in the
sport. After countless years of intense training, in 1999 David became
the first non-European to win the world championship title, which he
held for three years.Sadly, his journey appears to be nearing its end. On April 15, David narrowly missed qualifying for his sixth Olympics.
Skiing
Why do athletes keep risking it?
Why do athletes in snow sports choose to put ourselves in such extreme circumstances, knowing
we face serious injury and possibly death? Having lost two great
athletes in Sarah Burke and Nik Zoricic this year, questions and concerns within the snow sport community have never been louder or more fervent.So why keep doing it? It's simple. It's because of athletes
like Jan Hudec, Erin Mielzinsky, Ben Thomsen, Marie-Michele Gagnon and
Anna Goodman, to name but a few. They've defied the odds, and in doing
so found ways to inspire us all.
Skiing
What can we learn from Nik Zoricic's death?
Alone at my home in B.C., I scour the internet for anything to hold
onto. I try to cling to the community that I've laughed with, cried
with, and grown with. I'm searching for a reason, for support, for a
sense of understanding why someone like Nik Zoricic would be taken so
young, doing what he loved best - skiing.
Skiing
Erin Mielzynski's magic moment
Erin Mielzynski shocked the ski community on Sunday in Germany by winning a women's slalom for her first-ever World Cup victory (and first time finishing in the top 10). It was the first win by a Canadian in a World Cup slalom since Betsy Clifford in 1971.Incredible doesn't begin to describe Erin's momentous achievement at the very young age of 21. She's young and fast, which is great news for Alpine Canada and the women's team, who needed (and I believe deserve) a pick-me-up. This positive affirmation will not only help Erin, but the whole team moving forward.
Skiing
First look at the Sochi downhill
Since returning from a World Cup stop in Russia I've been bombarded with
people hungry for information. Everyone wants to know what Russia was
like and how preparations look for the 2014 Olympics.
Sadly, we never made it to Sochi during our stay in Russia. However, we
did get a good week in Rosa Khutor, which is to Sochi as Whistler was to
Vancouver for the 2010 Olympics.
Skiing
Canadian skiers have aura of confidence
With new courses comes new excitement. Both Andorra and Sochi hosted
World Cup events for the first time this week. Luckily, these tracks
continued to favour the Canadians and strengthened their momentum that
began two weeks ago.
Skiing
Back in the start gate
People may be wondering why I came back to the World Cup ski circuit so quickly, without any warm-up races or much training. I'm motivated to be prepared to ski a new downhill track in three weeks in Sochi, Russia - the Olympic venue for 2014 - and I want to be there.
Skiing
Training for my return a glorious whirlwind
In the last three-and-a-half days I have spent approximately 23 hours in the air, 10 hours in five different international airports, 6 hours driving to and from airports, and I've landed in four different time zones, three Canadian provinces and three different coutries.
Skiing
When plans fall apart, the real magic happens
Over the two years since my knee injury, my time was filled with
extremely hard work to rehab and rebuild an injured body and spirit.
This taught me that, sometimes, the best laid plans and resolutions are
those that leave room for life.Between my training/physio/surgeries I had to fill my time with
things that kept my spirits high and my mind engaged. In doing so, I
began to refine many old skills and learn new ones. All of these positive things happened because my plans didn't go as I'd hoped or expected.
Christmas shopping tips for athletes
Bouncing from remote mountain village to village from September through December, athletes are faced with inflated prices, isolation and little selection when it comes time for Christmas shopping.For some, the stress of trying to maintain regular Christmas traditions can be rather overwhelming. And so, this is my guidebook to help them along - and give you some insight into a little unknown part of our world.
Veteran skiers worth betting on
In every sport there are some safe bets: reliable athletes that, more
often than not, deliver top results. However, sports such as golf,
whitewater kayaking and alpine skiing are more difficult to predict than
others.It's these idiosyncrasies within the sport of alpine
that makes team selection difficult - especially at a time when budgets
are tight. Organizations like Alpine Canada have to place their bets on
which athletes will continue to perform and draw in revenue dollars.
With only so much money to go around, there simply isn't enough to
support everyone. So the athletes who are performing well now get
supported. This makes sense, but it's still hard to swallow for many
strong athletes.
Kucera's return highlights downhill opener
The alpine skiing season begins in earnest this weekend with the opening men's speed events at Lake Louise, Alta., highlighted by Canadian John Kucera, who's returning to racing after injury, and teammate Eric Guay, who's the reigning world downhill champion.
Fundraising Fiesta
'Tis the season to...attend fundraisers. The tour of gala, media and dinner functions across Canada have neared completion as Canada's Alpine Ski team has gotten to meet, greet, and share a few drinks with some incredible people. The events have spanned from Montreal to Vancouver and will wrap up on the Nov. 21st in Calgary.
Let the season begin!
Most Canadians cringe when temperatures start to drop, but there's a select group for whom excitement is building. It's as if skiers have this wonderful little secret, that falling temperatures mean the playground that is winter is nearing.My excitement is now at a particular high as this weekend marks the beginning of the 2011-12 alpine World Cup season. As the world watches, athletes will be putting new equipment and skills to the test on the Rettenbach glacier near Soelden, Austria.
On the comeback trail in Chile
Everyone loves a good comeback story. But how long is our attention
span, and what defines a comeback? Does it only take shape once old
glory is found again, or can it take different forms?
I have many questions in this realm as I face my own comeback from knee surgery head on.
I'm starting to realize that true comebacks are made up of a million
small victories, unseen and unsung. It's those small victories that give
you the power to continue, to take that next step.
Inside the alpine injury summit
Coming into Alpine Canada's injury summit, held in Calgary this week, I
was hopeful we would find the magic bullet to solve the injury woes in
our sport.After the research studies were presented and discussions were held, we
all realized there was no single cause for the rash of injuries we've
been seeing. But there are still plenty of reasons for optimism.
Taking stock, looking forward
For many people, the time for reflection, goal setting and taking stock
usually happens when they're ringing in the New Year. But for ski
racers, that time is now.
When the snow starts to melt, the national championships have wrapped
up, and thoughts of mountain biking return, we take a moment to reflect.
Where are we now? What have we accomplished? Where are we heading and
how do we get there?
Happy surgeon, happy Kelly
I met with my surgeon, Dr. Heard, Sunday and he was all smiles! My knee has come a long way in the last nine weeks and I've been given the all clear to start adding more elements to my fitness program.
Trading snow for sunshine
My time in Australia has been wonderful on so many levels. It was the
perfect environment to heal and strengthen after my surgery. Being with
David, working with an incredible physiotherapist, a gym down the street
and a wonderful family around us...I couldn't have asked for more.
The business of sport
As proven by some Olympic gold medallists who are now without sponsors - a medal doesn't equal earning power. No matter the athlete or sport there is a need to be more than just 'Faster, Higher, Stronger,' as the IOC's motto suggests.
Vancouver Games belonged to all of Canada
The Vancouver Olympics feel as though they were only yesterday, yet simultaneously it feels like a lifetime ago.Even writing this blog is a challenge, as it requires clarity of thought regarding an event filled with emotion. Hopefully, I can find a way to convey my mixed emotions of joy, pride, gratitude, and sadness for an event that consumed my life for over eight years.
Vonn case shows concussion culture must change
At what point do we say enough is enough?
I understand that the culture of sport is to tough it out, and nowhere is this more the case than in alpine skiing, where minor surgeries are barely a
by-line on injury lists.
But the brain is different, and that's why I'm a bit angry in the wake of Lindsey Vonn's decision to ski in the world championships despite her experiencing concussion symptoms.
Healthy is normal. Right?
Calgary is where our team's centre for recovery is located. Headed up by
Dr. Chris Irving and physiotherapist Kent Kobelka, there is a constant
flurry of calls, e-mails, and people filing through with injury after
injury. Some major, some minor, but all injured. I'm beginning to feel
as though this is the norm, that injury is inevitable in sport. However, that isn't the case, and I have to remind myself regularly in order to keep my racing spirit alive and well.
More surgery: Just what I needed (really)
I've written a lot about dealing with life's curveballs, bumps in the
road, detours, or whatever you want to call them, over the last year.
Whatever metaphor I've chosen to use, the reality is still the same:
life doesn't always go as planned.
However, that isn't always a bad thing.
Post-2010: What's next?
All that talk about 2010 for so many years, and now it's all history. In
many ways it's a bizarre feeling looking back at 2010 - but I prefer to
look forward, and I'm excited to see what 2011 has in store for us all.Thinking back to last year makes me see how far I've come. From a
dislocated knee with extensive damage to skiing, lifting, biking, etc. Still, there is more improvement needed for me to be race ready.
Cure for the Olympic hangover
Vancouver 2010 was the greatest red-and-white party Canada has ever experienced, yet the
athletes are quickly being forgotten. Corporations who cashed in during
the Olympics are pulling out and the public is moving on.
Please, don't let this happen.
Don't count out Canadian alpine team
You know it's been a bizarre year when Tiger Woods doesn't win a golf
tournament and only one Canadian woman places in the top 30 at the Lake
Louise World Cup stop.
I realize these two things may not have received equal media coverage, but in my world the parallel is glaringly obvious.
Ah, how times have changed.
Emotional return to the slopes
I jumped out of bed with excitement as my alarm sounded hours before the sun would rise.
Who will shine at Lake Louise?
The big names in men's skiing are all game for this weekend's opening downhill and super-G races at Lake Louise, with Canada's Erik Guay, Norway's Aksel Lund Svindal,
Switzerland's Didier Cuche and American Bode Miller all showing up with
solid training runs.My dark horse from the Canadian team is Robbie Dixon. He's hungry
after last year's disappointments and is an incredibly talented skier.
Winter means it's time to play
The snow is covering the streets of Chilliwack, B.C., today and the cold winter air has officially arrived.
Believe it or not, this makes me smile because winter means it's my time to play.
Kelly Vanderbeek
Canadian alpine skier Kelly VanderBeek has reached the World Cup podium three times in her career, including a super-G bronze on home snow at Lake Louise in 2006. VanderBeek nearly captured a medal at the 2006 Torino Olympics, missing the podium by just 0.03 of a second. Born in Kapuskasing and raised in Kitchener, Ont., VanderBeek now resides with her husband, and fellow Olympian, David Ford in Chilliwack, B.C.
