Winter sports Golden win for Aussie Paralympic skier Shannon Dallas
28 Jan 2009
Australian Paralympic skier Shannon Dallas posted a stunning result last week at the IPC Alpine World Cup in Sestriere, Italy, winning gold in the super combination shootout.
Dallas claimed the gold medal with a combined time of 2:00.88 in the downhill and slalom sections, ahead of Austria’s Harald Eder (2:01.9) and Great Britain’s Sean Rose (2:04.24).
Head Coach of the Australian Winter Paralympic team, Steve Graham, was delighted with Shannon’s performance, especially given his mixed results in the lead up to the event.
‘It was an amazing performance from Shannon on a difficult course against the best slalom skiers in the world,’ Graham said.
‘Not bad for a guy who didn’t like slalom 12 months ago.
‘This medal was a just reward for Shannon and the team in general because everyone is getting stronger and stronger without much luck going our way.’
The Australia Paralympic squad is enjoying good form in the lead up to the 2010 Winter Paralympic Games, from 12–21 March in Vancouver.
Cameron Rahles-Rahbula won Australia’s first medal for the season, a bronze, in the World Cup downhill race.
There were also promising signs for 2006 Paralympians Toby Kane and Marty Mayberry who posted their best ever results in a World Cup downhill race. Unfortunately, both missed out on the opportunity of winning medals in the super combination event after lacklustre performances in their slalom runs. Kane finished in sixth place overall, and Mayberry in seventh.
The Australian Sports Commission, through the Australian Paralympic Committee, is committed to funding the training and development of Australian Paralympians in preparation for the 2010 Games.
