STRATHCONA COUNTY – It was all gold, all the time for Canmore’s Special Olympians at the provincial winter games.
Cross-country skier Shane Stewart had a triple gold performance and figure skater Meg Ohsada won two gold medals at the Special Olympics Alberta Winter Games on Feb. 25-26 in Strathcona County.
In one day of racing, Stewart proved to be an absolute ironman when he won three classic races – the 5-km, 7.5-km, and 10-km – showing that the 18-year veteran of the sport has still got it, or never lost it, in the first place.
“The course was great and really played to Shane’s strengths,” said Lynda Jesse, local community coordinator at Special Olympics Alberta Bow Valley.
“He skis classic, so it was the perfect thing for him and he just shone.”
Stewart has been representing the Bow Valley from the local level to the international level since 2006 and, if the recent provincial games are any indication, he is showing no signs of slowing down.
The hope is Stewart’s exceptional racing and results qualify him for Team Alberta for the Special Olympics Canada Winter Games next year (Feb. 27 to March 2) in Calgary.
“It was the qualifying event, so Special Olympics Alberta will be making the selections public at the end of the month or in mid-April,” said Jesse. “He is in a good position, but we still don’t know what the ultimate selection will be.”
The Special Olympics Alberta cross-country ski team had impressive results in Strathcona County, winning a staggering 12 golds at the event. The other members of the team – Brock Jesse, Elouise Stewart, and Kieran Pothier – live in Cochrane. However, the team trains at the Canmore Nordic Centre.
A star in figure skating and in painting, Ohsada combined her two talents to make artistry on the ice as she won the level 3 dance and level 3 women’s singles competitions.
Noriko Ohsada, Ohsada’s mother, said her daughter was a little nervous going into the competition, but was quite pleased with what she had done.
For the competition, Ohsada had learned the European waltz and foxtrot for her routines. However, it was all very last minute, said Noriko.
“Meg was practising another dance for the last year, for the entire year, and we just found out she needed to practice a different one, a month ago, so the coaches and I were in panic mode,” said Noriko. “But she remembered the dances very well and she was doing really good, focusing and she managed it. So that was impressive how she adapted.
“[I] was more affected and concerned, probably,” added Noriko with a laugh.
Ohsada, who’s a celebrity around town, received tons of support from the community who are always inquiring about her art and skating. Noriko said it’s one of the things that motivates the figure skater to keep moving forward.
“She does a lot of things and skating is something she cherishes,” said Noriko.
“For her age, she’s not 16 anymore, she’s 28, so even to maintain the current skills is not easy, especially during the COVID times.
“I think one of the most important things is she is growing through skating and arts.”
