Palmer monoskier scores 2 more medals

PALMER — Andrew Kurka will never forget the month he turned 25.

Kurka, a Palmer Paralympian who celebrated his 25th birthday on Jan. 27, followed his first world title with two more medals during the World Para Alpine Championships in Tarvisio, Italy.

Earlier this week, Kurka continued his success at the championships with a silver medal in the men’s giant slalom. This followed a bronze in the super-G. Last week, Kurka captured his first world career world title with a win in the men’s downhill.

Kurka, who was left partially paralyzed after he was injured in an all-terrain vehicle accident when he was 13, has enjoyed great success in the world of adaptive skiing as a member of the U.S. National Team. Kurka has had to overcome a variety of serous injuries — including a broken back suffered during a training run in Sochi, Russia, that ended his 2014 Paralympic Games and a broken femur last year — to enjoy much of that success.

Since the broken femur in 2015, Kurka has enjoyed a strong stretch off success. In February of 2016, Kurka grabbed a gold medal in the men’s giant slalom event of the World Cup Finals.

Following that win, Kurka said mindset has been key.

“I haven’t been quite so gung-ho,” Kurka said by cellphone from Aspen, Colorado, last February, during a break in the IPC Adaptive World Cup Finals. “I’m using my brain, finishing a lot more races. Before, it was I win or I crash. Now, I’m consistently up there on the podium. It’s OK getting silver or bronze every now and then.”

That success has continued in 2017. Earlier this year, Kurka medaled three times during an IPC World Cup event. He earned gold and silver medals in downhill events, and added a bronze in the super-G.

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com.