Cameron Rahles-Rahbula has overcome remarkable adversity to become one of the world’s top Paralympic alpine skiers. He skis in the L2W standing class.

Cameron first gained an interest in Paralympic alpine skiing in 1996 at a training camp organised through Challenge (a children’s cancer support network), following the amputation of his leg as a result of bone cancer.

His first breakthrough performance came at the National Championships at Mt Hotham in 2001 when he came second to Paralympic gold medallist Michael Milton in the Slalom. Cameron was later named in the 2006 shadow Paralympic squad, and when he made international qualification at a European Cup in Austria, won a place in the 2006 Paralympic Team for the Torino Games.

Some of Cameron’s greatest results came at the 2004 World Cup where he won gold in the Downhill and Super G events and silver in the Slalom. At the 2007 World Cup, he won silver in the Super G, and in 2009 showed why he is one of Australia’s greatest winter athletes, when he became a World Champion with victory in the Slalom at the IPC World Championships in Korea. Less than a month later, he picked up gold medals in both the Super G and Super Combined at the IPC World Cup Finals in Canada.

After his unsuccessful Paralympic campaign in Torino, Cameron was keen to show off his world-class skills in Vancouver. He won bronze in the Slalom and the Super Combined and narrowly missed out on bronze in the Downhill – edged out by fellow Australian Marty Mayberry who shared the silver medal with a Swiss competitor.

Cameron is a physiotherapist and hopes to one day work at the AIS or the Geelong Football Club. He is a keen AFL supporter and sportsman and participates in cricket, tennis, table tennis, swimming, cycling and shooting.