January 22, 2010 Daniel Girard Brian McKeever has made the team - and history. The 30-year-old cross country skier from Canmore, Alta., who is legally blind, was one of six men and five women named to the Canadian Olympic team Friday, making him the first athlete to compete in both the Winter Games and the Paralympics. He'll also be the first Canadian - winter or summer - to do so in the same year. McKeever, who will race in the 50-kilometre event, won the Canadian trials last month. A winner of seven medals at the Paralympics in Salt Lake City and Turin, McKeever has about 10 per cent vision, all of it peripheral, due to Stargardt's disease, an inherited form of macular degeneration that's also claimed the sight of his father, Bill. Calling the Paralympics "the Olympic Games for people with disabilities," McKeever said he hopes his story shows people the gap between the two events isn't that large. "Just because somebody has a disability doesn't mean they are not training hard or are (not) extremely fit," he said in a statement. "I think the Paralympics is a great product. "We have something worth watching and I hope my story will bring more attention to that." The Olympics begin in Vancouver Feb. 12. The Paralympics start March 12. McKeever, who competes in the Paralympics guided by his older brother, Robin, a member of the 1998 Canadian Olympic team that went to Nagano, Japan, tries to follow a competitor in able-bodied events, using his peripheral vision to watch their line and turns. "This is truly one of the most talented Olympic teams Canada has ever assembled, which is not only a testament to the continued strength and growth of the national program but also demonstrates what an incredible athlete Brian is and the enormity of his accomplishment," said Tom Holland of Cross Country Canada. McKeever is scheduled to compete in five events at the Paralympics No virus found in this outgoing message Checked by PC Tools AntiVirus (6.0.0.19 - 10.004.132). http://www.pctools.com/free-antivirus/ To unsubscribe send a message to [email protected] with the subject unsubscribe. To change your subscription to digest mode or make any other changes, please visit the list home page at http://accessindia.org.in/mailman/listinfo/accessindia_accessindia.org.in
