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Canadian Paralympic Committee Invites Canada to ‘Feel the Rush’
Campaign to grow participation in sport for people with disabilities
The Canadian Paralympic Committee (CPC) has launched “Feel the Rush 2008,” a national campaign to celebrate Paralympic Sports and ensure people with disabilities do not miss out on the enjoyment of sport due to lack of information of the opportunities to participate.
People like Andrea Holmes. Andrea was born without the lower portion of her left leg. At school she excelled at many sports, and competed alongside able bodied teammates. However, as Andrea grew up she found there were fewer opportunities for her to compete. Andrea knew nothing about organized sport for people with disabilities until chance viewing of television coverage of the Salt Lake City Paralympic Games prompted her to search the internet.
Even then, it was hard to find out how she could get involved, “There was no single source of information. I spent hours searching for what sports I could do and where. I eventually found a list of coaches and started calling them. I started at A, but it wasn’t until P that I found a coach willing to let me join his club. Now all of that information is at your finger-tips on www.feeltherush.ca, and people with a disability no longer have to go through the same frustration and disheartening experience as I did”
The website, www.feeltherush.ca, is at the heart of the CPC campaign. It is a destination to learn about the sports best suited to different abilities and interests, and to locate national, provincial, or local sporting associations. Over the coming weeks, the website will feature people with disabilities from across the country, and tell the stories of how they became involved in different sports, the challenges and fears they faced, and their advice for people with similar disabilities.
Along with the website, the campaign includes a promotional DVD, posters and stickers designed to communicate the fun of playing the 24 winter and summer Paralympic Sports.
“By inspiring Canadians with a disability to “feel the rush” of confidence and empowerment that comes with enjoying sport, we hope increase the numbers of participants in Paralympic Sports at all levels,” said Brian MacPherson, Chief Operating Officer of the Canadian Paralympic Committee. “More people participating at the recreational level will increase the number of athletes with the potential to become high performance athletes and support Canada retaining its top medal winning position at future Paralympic Games.”
2008 will be an exciting year for the Paralympic movement in Canada. In September summer Paralympians will compete in Beijing. Then all eyes will turn to Canada for the lead up to the 2010 Paralympic Winter Games. The CPC is urging both able-bodied and disabled Canadians to “feel the rush,” by learning about Paralympic sports in the lead up to 2010 and to take the opportunity to experience the breath-taking sports live when Canada’s Paralympians compete in Vancouver and Whistler.
For more information, visit www.feeltherush.ca
Calling all sailing and ski enthusiasts!
Here's an outline of Johanne's accomplishments:
Johanne Daly from Varennes, Quebec is living her dream.
For 15 years Johanne worked as one of Quebec's few female mechanics. Passionate about her trade, Johanne was widely recognised for her professional skill as well as her work to encourage more women to become mechanics In 2001 Johanne's career was cut short when she was injured in a workplace accident and lost the use of her left foot.
Before her accident Johanne was a keen skier and volunteered as a ski-patroller at Mont Habitant in Quebec. In 2004, four years after her accident Johanne was introduced to sit-skiing, and eagerly started to re-learn how to keep her balance, make turns and eventually started competing in races.
Inspired by the discovery that she could continue to enjoy skiing, Johanne began researching other sports for people with disabilities. She decided to try sailing, and was soon hooked. Keen to feel the thrill she experienced in ski-racing, Johanne decided to enter a sailing competition. Johanne was very nervous about competing in her first regatta. So she set herself a goal to finish in 10th place and she did. Achieving her goal gave Johanne the confidence to enter another regatta, where she finished third and received her first medal.
Johanne continued to race all summer, challenging herself to try more difficult races and weather conditions, and in the final regatta of the season achieved first place.
With the help of the Canadian Association for Disabled Skiing and the Adaptive Sailing Association of Quebec Johanne is working hard to develop her technical skills towards winning a place on Quebec's adaptive skiing and sailing teams.
Johanne passion for life is infectious. She now puts the hard work and enthusiasm she had for her career as a mechanic into skiing, sailing and continuing to encourage and inspire everyone she meets to follow their dreams.
To read notes from the chat -click here 
Download PDF version
On Sunday May 4th, 2008 from 7-8 p.m Toronto time we will be hosting our first Paralympic "webinar" (chat session). Members of Ability Online are invited to chat with Josh Dueck, Canadian Paralympic Alpine skier extraordinaire. Learn what it takes to be a Paralympic athlete.
Not a member? Register today for a free membership so you don't miss out meeting these wonderful athletes. For more information on the Ability Online paralympic webinars contact Michelle McClure at michelle@abilityonline.org.
For more information on the Canadian Paralympics check out www.feeltherush.ca
In the Ability Online chat on May 4th 2008, Josh Dueck shared his story of getting back onto the ski slopes only 9 months after receiving a spinal cord injury from a skiing mishap. Josh’s determination to “keep the dream alive” is only one example of his inner strength. He mentioned the importance of having support from friends and family, of setting goals and priorities, and most of all, in loving life and all that it has to offer no matter what challenges come our way.
To read notes from the chat -click here Download PDF version
On Tuesday May 13th we held our second Paralympic Chat Event with Bradley Bowden and Paul Rosen. It was a lively chat room with lots of questions for the players. Both Paul and Brad were comfortable answering any question, as well as sharing some of the more humourous aspects of the game. How's the jaw feeling Paul?
Paul and Brad are members of the Canadian National Sledge Hockey team. They were both part of the team who won gold at the 2006 Paralympic Winter Games (2006) in Turin and the World Championships in Boston in 2008. Brad has been a member of the team since 1999. Paul joined the team in 2001 and was the oldest rookie in the history of the Paralympic Winter Games when he debuted in 2002 at age 41.
To read notes from the chat -click here Download PDF version
Ability Online is a special place for some very special kids.
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Kids come to us to find friends, feel respected and be supported, no matter what their differences might be.
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Most of all, they come because they feel included. Ability Online believes in them and their potential and helps them believe in themselves.
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November 18th -24th, 2007 is National Bullying Awareness Week. We want everyone to know that Ability Online STANDS UP to bullying too! In fact, since we began in 1992 we have always made a pledge to have zero tolerance for bullying within our online program. The safety of our members is our number one priority.
How do we do this?
“Three strikes and you’re out!”
very clear to all our members when they first join, and then we send out friendly reminders throughout the year. If you break a rule, your access will be restricted for a week, then a month and then permanently. Usually one warning is all it takes. No one wants to be alone.
But we don’t stop there –our trained online volunteers (Hosts) are there to monitor all public messages to make sure everyone is being friendly and respectful of one another. Any inappropriate online behaviour is addressed immediately. But to make this really work, we assist our members with the wording of their messages so that they don’t offend anyone, or misunderstand a message which can lead to hurt feelings and ongoing disputes. Our members know they can get the help and support they need –it’s just a mouse click away.
This year we added a new feature to Ability Online because many of our members were coming to us asking for help with people who were “bugging” them –not on Ability Online, but in other online forums. Just because it was outside our program, didn’t mean we were going to ignore it. This fall we launched our “Bully Bouncers” Program – a private place to get advice on how to deal with bullies –on and offline. We even provide help for the bullies if they want it –giving them practical advice on how to handle their anger and desire to hurt others. Our tips are kept simple and practical as some of our members have cognitive challenges and have a harder time reading and understanding lots of information. As well, the support ALL of our members receive online, helps them build their confidence and self-esteem –making them feel better about themselves, and not allowing others to make them feel bad.
We stand up for each other, and hope that others will follow our example.
So remember, bullying is NOT cool. If you are being bullied, know that you are not alone! Our members stand up for each other and you can too!
You can be a part of our supportive online program! Just click on the Register button to set up a membership –it’s free! And then tell your friends and family about us! Together we can make our world a little friendlier for everyone!
Next: Inspired to get involved? Click here. 