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Post by Admin on Mar 11, 2022 6:07:42 GMT
It took a last-minute injunction- and then two nail biter races - for Brenna Huckaby to medal in the 2022 Beijing Paralympic Winter Games. Huckaby won bronze in snowboard cross on Monday, after surviving a crash in the medal race and a come-from-behind, games-saving second place in the semifinal race.
She finished third after colliding with Dutch rider Lisa Bunschoten, who screamed in frustration after the crash forced her off the course. All Huckaby had to do was finish to win a place on the podium.
She had to go to court to compete
As the 2022 games came around Brenna expected to defend her titles, but instead she found herself having to petition to even compete.
The International Paralympic Committee decided there weren't enough women in Huckaby's classification and that she wouldn't be able to compete with others who have less severe leg impairments. Essentially, the governing body was saying she was too disabled to compete.
"I felt like it was completely wrong for me to be locked out of the competition, and so I fought hard," she said.
"The IPC continued to say, no, you can't compete without giving me a valid reason."
In December, she filed an injunction with a German court.
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Post by Admin on Mar 11, 2022 19:31:15 GMT
 Brenna Huckaby captured Team USA’s first snowboarding gold medal of the Paralympic Winter Games Beijing 2022 on Friday at Genting Snow Park in Zhangjiakou, China. Under an overcast sky, Huckaby threw down a fast 1:17:28 on run two to win gold. Team China’s Geng Yanhong and Li Tiantian won silver and bronze in 1:17:38 and 1:17:46, respectively. American Brittani Coury placed ninth after sustaining an injury in practice earlier this week. Katlyn Maddry did not start due to injury. Huckaby was in second place headed into heat two and still needed to make up time at the halfway point of her second run. She flew through the bottom section to finish 0.1 ahead of the Chinese athletes, enough to win her the gold medal. “There were a couple mistakes, but I know that bottom section is where I shine,” Huckaby said. “So I was like, if I can just lease it and put my edge on hold and keep it together. I knew that I could do pretty well so that's what I did.” The 26-year-old mother of two’s training in the leadup to Beijing has been playing a game of catch-up. She gave birth to her second daughter Sloan just before the pandemic, so access to training time and facilities was a struggle. “Before this season, I didn't have a whole lot of training,” Huckaby said. “I didn't have a lot of time on snow. I didn't have a lot of time in the gym. For this year, I have just put everything I have in my training. I'm in the gym every single day. I'm on snow almost every single day. It's obviously paid off.” Huckaby won medals in both her Beijing 2022 events with gold in banked slalom and bronze in snowboardcross. She said she wouldn’t be competing and winning in the Winter Paralympics without the support of everyone in her life. Huckaby paid tribute to her late grandparents in her banked slalom race. “I have gold butterflies on my fingernails because we remember my grandma who passed away last year with butterflies,” Huckaby said. “And my grandpa passed away about two years ago. We remember him by an eagle in these little temporary tattoos. So I have my grandpa my wrist and my grandma on my fingertips.” While she celebrated her individual success on Friday, Huckaby also acknowledged the growth women’s snowboarding has seen since it first joined the Paralympic program at the Winter Paralympic Games Sochi 2014. She hopes the excitement from Beijing 2022 continues to push the sport forward. |
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Post by Admin on Mar 12, 2022 14:42:53 GMT
🇺🇸 Brenna Huckaby takes🥇 in the Women's Banked Slalom SB-LL2 |Beijing 2022 Paralympic Winter Games
280 views Mar 12, 2022 Brenna Huckaby 🇺🇸 tops the #ParaSnowboard Women's Banked Slalom SB-LL2 event on day 7 of the Beijing 2022 Paralympic Winter Games.
The International Paralympic Committee's vision is to make for an inclusive world through Para sport. Our mission is to lead the Paralympic Movement, oversee the delivery of the Paralympic Games and support members to enable Para athletes to achieve sporting excellence.
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