2014 Paralympics in Review

Another Winter Paralympic Games came to an end on Sunday, March 16, and everybody on Team Canada has returned home. Canada had a strong showing at these Games, winning 25 medals (includes 10 Gold), and finishing third place in the medal standings.

Among the stars was veteran Paralympic skier Brian McKeever. He won three gold medals in his three individual events. He also became the first Canadian Winter Paralympian to win 10 gold medals in a career.

Sit-skiing veteran Josh Ducek won gold in the super combined and silver in the downhill. Ducek would go on to be Canada's flag-bearer in the closing ceremony.

Mac Marcoux made his Paralympic debut by winning three medals, including a gold one in the giant slalom. It was also exciting to see Mark Arendz win silver in the biathalon. The visually impaired biathlete collected Canada's first medal of these Games. He went on to win bronze in the 12.5K three days later.

The most surprising moment may have been Chris Klebl. The alpine skier took gold in the men’s 10K sitting cross-country race. It’s surprising because almost no one predicted the 42-year-old Paralympic veteran would win after having come up short in his previous two Winter Games.

The curling team returned to claim another gold medal in one of Canada's most popular sports (the first being hockey, of course). Their victory proved to the world once again that Canada has the best wheelchair curling team. They entered as defending Paralympic champions and as world curling champions.

The most bittersweet moment for many was when the sledge hockey team was forced to take home a bronze medal. While it still counts as a moment to be proud of, expectations were high that they would win gold. Their popular rivals Team USA claimed gold when they beat Norway (who claimed silver). Canada’s Adam Dixon scored four goals, the most goals of the 2014 tournament.

Canada’s other medalists of these Games were Caleb Brousseau (bronze), Kimberly Joines (bronze) and Chris Williamson (bronze) for their respective alpine skiing events.

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The difference between jealousy and envy

During a Bible Study I did four years ago, I learned the subtle distinctions between jealousy and envy. I thought the two words were interchangeable and meant the same thing. Apparently not so.

Jealousy seeks to have what another person has. Envy, however, seeks to destroy what another person has. The act of jealousy is considered passive. Envy is about putting jealousy into action. Envy is one of the seven deadly sins, next to pride, avarice, wrath, lust, gluttony and sloth. 

Jealousy is not considered a 'capital' sin, as outlined in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, because it does not engender other sins and vices. God is described in the Old Testament as "a jealous God" (Exodus 20:5) whenever people focus their attention away from Him in favour of worldly things, including other gods.

I post this blog for three reasons: 1) I need to be reminded of these distinctions again, 2) I've been wrestling with these unhealthy feelings of jealousy lately, and 3) I want to share this distinction with others, including those who may be experiencing a similar trial. I'm dealing with my jealousy issues now, and have faith that I will recover from them soon.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Canada takes Bronze in sledge hockey finals

In a rematch with Norway, Canada claimed the bronze medal in sledge hockey this afternoon, in a 3-0 score.

Team Canada came back with a vengeance at Shayba Arena after a heartbreaking loss to Team USA on Thursday. They did not allow the Norwegians to dominate the game, even in a scoreless first period.

The game caught fire when forward Brad Bowden scored the first goal 30 seconds into the second period. Canada upped the intensity when Billy Bridges got the second goal during a power play midway through the game. Bridges also scored the final goal during the third period.

Bridges, it should be noted, is the all-time leading point-getter in Canadian sledge hockey.

Canada goal Corbin Watson spent most of the game worry-free, as most of the play occurred near Norway's end of the ice. He finished the game with 10 saves to post the shutout.

Norway's loss today means it is the first time they have failed to medal since sledge hockey was introduced to the Paralympics in 1994. That year it was played in the Norwegian city of Lillehammer.

In other sledge hockey action, the US team won gold in a 1-0 final against the hosts Russia. This makes the US team back-to-back Paralympic champions.

A bittersweet victory to be sure, the Canadian team have no need to feel ashamed. They are a young team with a bright future.

You can watch this game in its entirety below.

Canada's nightmare sledge match in Sochi

Disappointment came for Canada today.

Defending champions Team USA defeated the Canadians in their sledge hockey semi-final 3-0. This loss means Canada is now forced to play for bronze instead of gold.

Sixteen-year-old Declan Farmer scored the game's first two goals during the first period, at 9:12 and 14:04. Joshua Pauls scored the final goal four minutes into the second period, off a pass by Farmer.

Though 11 shots on goal were made, American goalie Steve Cash blocked them all.

An attempted goal made by Canadian Billy Bridges in the final seconds left in the game was called off because teammate Kevin Rempel was in the crease.

It's a bitter defeat for Canada as it wanted to become the first country to sweep men’s, women’s and sledge hockey at an Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Canada will face Norway at Shayba Arena for the bronze medal on Saturday. USA and hosts Russia will play for the gold medal, also to be played Saturday.

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Canada sweeps preliminary round of sledge hockey tournament

Canada wasted no time in wearing down the Czechs and eliminating them from the competition today, in a 1-0 score at.Shayba Arena. However it would take an entire first period in order to get there.

Captain Greg Westlake scored the game's only goal shortly after the second period began. It is his second goal of the tournament.

The Czechs, though weakened, refused to go down without a fight, which explains why the game was scoreless throughout the first period. Their goalie Michael Vapenka proved to be their strongest player, despite failing to block the one shot in the second period.

Westlake told the media afterwards it was a fun game to play, despite being a very stressful one. Canadian forward Tyler McGregor expressed extra joy over today's win because it coincided with his birthday. He says winning gold would be "icing on the cake."

Canada will now face the United States in their semi-final match-up on Thursday, at 12pm ET.

Russia and Norway will play the other semi-final game Thursday.

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Canada's sledge hockey team battles Norway to a 4-0 win

Canada's sledge hockey team roared back to the Shayba Arena this morning to defeat one of their fiercest rivals in a 4-0 game.

Norway was the team who prevented Canada from earning a medal at the 2010 Paralympic Games in Vancouver. The Canadian squad stepped their game up defensively today, and managed to keep it scoreless through the first period.

Then, at the top of the second period, Dominic Larocque scored the game's first goal. It's his third of the tournament. Laroque seized the opportunity to score when Norwegian forward Ole Bjarte Austevoll took a penalty.

Adam Dixon, who CBC Sports analyst Rob Snoek nicknamed 'Duck Dynasty' for his long, shaggy beard, scored the other two goals before the end of the third period. (Dixon scored two goals and two assists against Sweden yesterday.)

The most spectacular goal by far was the last one scored by Marc Dorion in the final 22 seconds of the game. It was his first goal of the tournament.

With today's second win, the Canadian team tops the Group A standings, with 6 points. The United States leads Group B.

Canada has Monday off before facing the Czech Republic on Tuesday. The Czechs are currently the second-place team in Group A.

Sledge hockey in Sochi begins with a blowout

The first men's ice sledge hockey game was played today between Canada and Sweden. This year Canada is seeking redemption after finishing in fourth place in Vancouver four years ago. They began their quest today with a bang. Or, to put it more accurately, with a blowout.

Sweden, the country that invented sledge hockey, were met with a crushing defeat as the Canadians trounced them 10-1. Among the top Canadians who scored goals were Adam Dixon, Anthony Gale and Dominic Larocque. Billy Bridges scored the first goal against Sweden just over a minute after the game started.

Greg Westlake, Canada's team captain, told CBC Sports following the game that despite today's win, he would like to seem his teammates improve defensively. They will get their chance in tomorrow's game against Norway.

The men's Norwegian team played their first game against the Czech Republic today, and won by a score of 2-1.

Canadian team coach Mike Mondin assured fans that his sledge hockey team will be fully prepared to face the tough Norwegian team tomorrow.

The preliminary round of men's sledge hockey will continue until Thursday, when the top four teams advance to the semi-finals. Canada is predicted to be a medal favourite at these games.

TV listings for the 2014 Paralympic Games

Friday, March 7
CBC & AMI    Opening Ceremony (Live)    2-5pm

Saturday, March 8
CBC & AMI     Live Coverage        1-3pm
Sportsnet     Daily Highlights           7-9pm

Sunday, March 9
AMI        Live Coverage        9-11am
CBC                                       2-4pm

Monday, March 10
AMI                    9-10am
CBC                    4-5pm
Sportsnet             7-8pm

Tuesday, March 11
AMI                    9-10am
CBC                    4-5pm   
Sportsnet             7-8pm

Wednesday, March 12
AMI                    9-10am
CBC                    4-5pm
Sportsnet             7-8pm

Thursday, March 13
AMI                    9-10am
CBC                    4-5pm
Sportsnet             7-8pm

Friday, March 14
AMI                    9-10am
CBC                    4-5pm
Sportsnet             7-8pm

Saturday, March 15
CBC & AMI    Live Coverage        3-5pm

Sunday, March 16
CBC & AMI    Closing Ceremony    1-4pm

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The Paralympics are back, this time with expanded coverage

The 2014 Winter Paralympics begin next Friday, March 4 in Sochi, Russia. What is significant about these games is that it will, for the first time, receive more extensive coverage, including live TV broadcasts!

The CBC and Accessible Media Inc. (AMI) are providing most of the Canadian coverage between March 7 and 16. Yahoo Canada Sports and Sendtosports will handle live Internet streaming of the games. There is also an unconfirmed report that Sportsnet may also provide some coverage.

A broadcast deal was recently struck with the Canadian Paralympic Committee in response to viewer dissatisfaction over the extremely limited attention given to the Paralympics in past years. This deal means that more than 65 hours of television broadcast and up to 350 hours of digital streaming.

The official Paralympics website offers live streaming at http://www.paralympic.org/news/watch-sochi-2014-paralympics-livestream-trailer. Alternatively, you can also watch them live on its YouTube channel, http://www.youtube.com/user/ParalympicSportTV. It presently has 23,811 subscribers (as of March 2).

NBC is providing coverage of the games for the first time ever in the US. A huge outcry occurred in the disability community when it ignored the 2012 London games two summers ago. Network executives at the time wrote a message with a dismissive tone suggesting that there was little or no viewer interest in the Paralympics. Channel 4 in the UK, however, provided acclaimed, though mostly pre-recorded, coverage that was syndicated internationally.

We will be blogging more about the 2014 Paralympics, including a TV guide-style listing.

A final TV schedule has not officially been released yet. We can tell you that CBC will show the Opening Ceremonies live on March 4, from 2-5pm ET.