Banff (AB), Canada – One of Canada’s most successful para-alpine skiers, Chris Williamson, was back on snow this week at the Sunshine Village Ski & Snowboard Resort near Banff, Alberta, after sitting out the 2011-12 season due to injury.
Williamson, who has 100 International Paralympic Committee (IPC) World Cup podiums, 13 world championships medals and three Paralympic medals, tore his right anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and injured his left wrist after a fall during warm-up at the 2011 IPC world championships in Sestriere, Italy, last January. The Markham, Ontario resident hit the slopes for the first time in 15 months on Tuesday to do some freeskiing.
“Overall for how many runs we did, I was happy. I don’t think I ever got to the middle of a run and felt fatigued and needed to stop or anything like that. They were still all full runs and it felt strong throughout, from beginning to end,” said Williamson, who had five different surgeries on his road to recovery, four of which were required to reconstruct his wrist.
“I’ve been to the gym the last two months since my last surgery and I’ve been working hard but there’s no way to get the same kind of pressure on your muscles as you do in skiing.”
Williamson, 39, competes in the visually impaired category and won four medals at the 2011 world championships with his guide Robin Fémy, of Mont-Tremblant, Quebec. He was poised to win his fifth, sitting second after the first giant slalom run, when he was injured.
“I’ve had some pretty serious injuries and I’ve always come back the next time stronger and with better results so I always like to think that I am going to continue doing that streak,” said Williamson who has been hitting the gym six or seven times a week since the beginning of February. “Plus, the fact that I’m turning 40, I’m going to have to work even harder since everyone is younger than me.”
The 2011-12 season was the first full season Williamson has missed in his 14 years with the team, so he got to spend a rare winter at home with his family.
“I work full-time. I have two kids (daughter, 8, and son, 4). So when I’m not working full-time or in the gym I am busy with (family),” he said. “I’ve obviously been following how all the team has been doing and how my competitors have been doing, but more just trying to stay positive in building up my strength.”
Canadian Para-Alpine Ski Team World Cup head coach, Sven Pouliot, skied with Williamson and team guide Chloé Lauzon-Gauthier, of Joliette, Quebec – who filled in Tuesday because Fémy is in Europe – and was pleased with Williamson’s progress.
“It was a very important day for everyone. We were anxious to see what the results were going to be like, but it is really hard to make any assumptions for the future based on today, but so far, so good. We are really happy with the first day,” said Pouliot, who stressed the importance of not rushing Williamson’s recovery.
“I think right now what is important is to really follow the plan to return to competition without making any compromises,” Pouliot said. “We want to make sure this is done the best it can be.”
The three-time Paralympian is also committed to taking it slow.
“We might be ready to just be doing forerunning in the pre-season instead of getting into races right away. The main goal is just at least to go to world championships and World Cup finals, in Sochi (Russia), just to at least get back into the ring, so to speak,” Williamson said of his plans for next season.