Noteboom The Law Firm

Disabled Veteran Athletes Enjoy Another Successful Winter Clinic

The 25^th annual National Disabled Veterans Winter Sports Clinic, also known as Miracles on a Mountainside, was held a few weeks ago in Snowmass Village, Colorado. This event is the single biggest winter sports and adaptive skiing clinic in the world and expands every year.

The athletes ranged in age from 18 to 80 years, and for some, this is the first contact they have had with winter sports, skiing, and adaptive sports. This year saw almost 400 disabled athletes from across the country, 220 of whom use wheelchairs.

The clinic is available to every U.S. military veteran receiving care at a Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) medical center and suffering from disabilities such as: 

• spinal cord injuries or disease;
• orthopedic amputations;
• visual impairments; and/or
• neurological conditions.

The disabled veteran athletes were able to participate in both Alpine and Nordic skiing in addition to:

• rock climbing;
• curling;
• snowshoeing;
• archery;
• fly fishing;
• sled hockey;
• trap shooting;
• snowcat races; and
• snowmobiling.

Some veteran-athletes may qualify to compete in the U.S. Paralympics. The VA has partnered with the U.S. Paralympics for years in order to put on the Winter Sports Clinic. As a result, some veteran-athletes have used the sports clinic as an opportunity to qualify for the U.S. Paralympic team, which in turn presents training opportunities at an elite level.