Josh
Dueck, a Canadian Paraplegic skier was the first man to land a backflip on a sit
ski. Josh injured his spine in 2004 when he entered a jump too fast and
overshot the landing. He fell a 100 feet and landed on his chest. When Josh
regained consciousness, he had lost the use of his legs. However his passion
for skiing did not end there. Josh learned to sit ski within a year after his
injury and won a silver medal for Canada in the Whistler’s Paralympic Games in
2010 and a gold medal in 2011 X Games in mono ski cross. After many years of
training and careful consideration and planning, he landed the first ever back
flip in the show.
“Here we were eight years
later," says Dueck. "It was a challenge that had risk to it—to do a
backflip on a sit ski. It had never been done. It was simply an internal
challenge—a battle of ego and intuition” (Fitz Cahall).
Salomon Freeski TV S5 E13 Sit Ski Backflip
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4xjUUf_sK84
“We all struggle with our own
disabilities, our own challenges, whether they be physical, emotional, or
spiritual,” says paraplegic freeskier Josh Dueck. “This was a deeply personal
quest. There was a ton of risk involved with the backflip in the sit ski. It
had never been done. There was a lot of fear.”
Josh’ story shows us that with hard work and determination our dreams can be accomplished, no matter what the obstacles.
