Hon. Robert Ghiz, Premier of Prince Edward Island, and Hon. Carolyn Bertram, Minister responsible for Sport, would like to send best wishes to Paralympic athletes Mark Arendz and Billy Bridges, as they prepare to complete at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Paralympic Games.
“Having two Island athletes representing Canada at this level of competition is a wonderful moment for our entire province,” said Premier Ghiz. “I know that all Islanders join me in wishing Mark and Billy all the best throughout the Games.”
“Becoming a world-class athlete in any sport is a difficult task,” said Minister Bertram. “The fact that Mark has reached this competitive level in two sports is a testament to his hard work, determination and skill, and Billy has had tremendous success at both the national and international level. On behalf of all Islanders, I wish Billy and Mark all the best during the Games.”
Arendz, a native of Springton, is a member of the 2010 Canadian Para-Nordic Ski team and will compete in both biathlon and cross-country skiing events at the Games.
Mark began his competitive cross-country skiing career in 2003 with the use of a ski prosthetic and racing in able-bodied competitions. He was inspired to try biathlon after watching the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympic Winter Games. As part of his local cadet biathlon team, Mark set record results at Nationals and helped his team become the first Island team to medal at Nationals. Since joining Canada’s Para-Nordic Ski team, he has had several top-ten finishes in both national and international competitions.
Bridges, born in Summerside, is a member of the Canadian Men’s Sledge Hockey Team who will be looking to defend their gold medal from the 2006 Torino Winter Paralympic Games.
Bridges began playing sledge hockey at the age of 12 and has been a member of Canada’s National Sledge Hockey team since 1998 when he was only 14. This makes Bridges the youngest person ever to compete on the national team.
Since becoming a member of Canada’s Sledge Hockey team, Bridges has played for Canada at two Paralympic Winter Games and three International Paralympic Committee (IPC) Sledge Hockey World Championships. His accolades include a Paralympic gold medal (2006), two world championship gold medals (2000 and 2008), receiving the team’s most valuable player (MVP) award in 2005 and 2006, being named to the Paralympic all-star team in 2006 and serving as an alternate captain of the national team for the past three seasons.
BACKGROUNDER
Mark Arendz:
Paralympic Games schedule is as follows:
March 13 Biathlon 3km Pursuit, standing
March 17 Biathlon 12.5km Pursuit, standing
March 18 Cross-country 10km, standing
March 21 Cross-country 1km Sprint, standing
Paralympic Biathlon
Biathlon was introduced in the Paralympics of 1988 in Innsbruck, Austria. As in the Olympic Biathlon, the sport combines cross-country skiing with rifle shooting. Unlike Olympic athletes, Paralympic biathlon athletes shoot from the prone position. Athletes in the Pursuit ski three 2km loops, stopping after the first and second loop to shoot five targets located 10m away with the goal of hitting a 15mm bulls eye. The penalty for a missed shot is the skier must ski a 150m loop for each miss. The skier with the fastest time, including penalty loops, wins. In the 12.5km race, athletes ski five loops and shoot four times. Missed targets cause skiers a one-minute penalty for each missed target. Again, the skier with the fastest time wins. Standing skiers may use slightly modified equipment, such as a prosthesis, to compensate for their particular disability. There are three categories of Paralympic Biathlon – sitting, standing, and visually impaired.
Cross-country Skiing
Cross-country skiing first appeared at the 1976 Paralympic Winter Games in Örnsköldsvik, Sweden and is similar to the Olympic version of the event with participants skiing on tracks from 2.5km to 20km depending on the race. As with Olympic cross-country athletes, Paralympic cross-country skiers can compete in both classical and free techniques categories and they use the same type of equipment. There are three categories of Paralympic cross-country skiing – sitting, standing, and visually impaired.
Billy Bridges:
The first day of competition for the Canadian Men’s Sledge Hockey team is March 13.
Sledge Hockey
Sledge Hockey debuted at the 1994 Lillehammer Winter Paralympic Games. It is a fast-paced, highly physical game much like hockey. Competitors use a two-blade sledge, a type of sled that allows the puck to pass beneath. They also carry two sticks equipped with a spike-end for pushing and a blade-end for shooting. Charlottetown has hosted the World Sledge Hockey Challenge in both 2008 and 2009 in which Canada won gold and silver respectively.