Special Olympics Canada Winter Games bringing out the best in Manitoba athletes

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This article was published 16/02/2024 (593 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Most paths have precluded a sense of belonging for Cory Beardy, except the ones carved by his skis.

Beardy, 14, lives with a fetal alcohol spectrum disorder — which has reduced his mental capacity to that of a nine-year-old — attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and, diagnosed in more recent years, mental illnesses brought on by a struggle to forge and maintain friendships, due to his disability.

The Thompson teen is soft-spoken by nature but has come out of his shell since trying cross-country skiing a few years ago.

“I like being outdoors,” Beardy said. Shana McLeod, Beardy’s foster mother of three years, offered more context.

“When he first heard about cross-country skiing, he was excited to try it out. He tried it and he did very well… and he decided to continue because he loves cross-country skiing,” McLeod said. “That is the reason why he decided to participate— it helped give him a sense of inclusion, sense of belonging, fulfillment, doing something for his community.”

Beardy’s feeling is one shared by many of the other 57 Manitoban athletes preparing for the Special Olympics Canada Winter Games in Calgary Feb. 27 – March 2, says Colleen Lowdon-Bula, director of sport for Special Olympics Manitoba.

“One hundred per cent,” said Lowdon-Bula. “We’re lucky in the fact that our team is small enough that we don’t take up an entire hotel so we’ll be sharing with Team Saskatchewan and Team New Brunswick, and I know before we even get there that there will be friendships made between athletes from the different provinces because that’s what happens.”

More than 1,200 athletes across the country will convene across eight sports — five-pin bowling, alpine and cross-country skiing, curling, floor hockey, snowshoeing and speed skating — and vie for the chance to don Canada’s colours at the 2025 World Winter Games in Italy.

Manitoba returns 21 athletes who have participated in past winter games and welcomes 37 new participants.

“I know that some of them, their goal is to go to the World Games in (Italy) in 2025 and I really hope that that dream comes true because these athletes have worked hard and just seeing them succeed is the best part of the games,” Lowdon-Bula said. “There’s no better feeling than standing at the finish line of a race and seeing an athlete cross and realize that they’ve had a personal best or that they’ve won.”

Bowling, curling and floor hockey will not run at the World Winter Games. As for other sports, athletes are categorized based on their disability and can qualify for the World Winter Games based on how they fare in that category.

Jackie Trudeau is one of the more accomplished athletes making the trip. The Winnipeg product won gold and bronze in alpine skiing at the 2020 national Winter Games in Thunder Bay and was set to represent Canada at the World Winter Games in Russia before the pandemic struck. Her success finally took her beyond the border last year when she was the only Manitoban to compete at the X-Games, in the unified race in Aspen.

Calgary will be as much about the social aspect as it is about the competition, Trudeau said.

“I know a couple of people from B.C., a couple of people I know from Alberta, so it’s kind of nice to see them again. I’ll try to win a couple of medals, I know I’ll portably get a couple of gold medals out there, but it’ll be fun,” said Trudeau, 39.

“It’s just a big event. It’s a huge thing. The big thing is you do the best you can, which we all want to win medals and stuff. It gives you experience. I remember going to Thunder Bay in 2020, that was my first and it was really fun because you get experience with this. Some people you don’t know from other provinces, so it’s a fun experience.”

jfreysam@freepress.mb.ca

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