SUN VALLEY, Idaho — 17-year-old Jesse Keefe of Sun Valley, Idaho was named to the U.S. Para Alpine Paralympic Team Wednesday ahead of the Beijing 2022 Winter Paralympic Games beginning March 4.
According to a press release from OutsidePR, the Sun Valley Resort is currently hosting the U.S. Paralympics Alpine Skiing national team through Feb. 21 for a camp before the games in Beijing.
Keefe and seven other athletes participating in the training on Bald Mountain were named to the U.S. Para Alpine Paralympic Team Wednesday. Keefe is apart of the Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation team.
The alpine skiing para-athlete was born without an ankle bone in his right leg and his foot was amputated at 11 months old, OutsidePR said.
The 17-year-old hometown athlete is the 2021 U.S. National Giant Slalom champion in the standing category.
Keefe's goal was to compete at the Paralympic Winter Games one day, according to the International Paralympic Committee. On Wednesday, his ambitions came true with an invite while training on Bald Mountain.
Other athletes currently training in Sun Valley who will be competing for the U.S. in the 2022 Paralympic Games are listed below with their hometowns:
Sitting skiers: Ravi Drugan (Eugene, Ore.), Andrew Kurka (Palmer, Alaska) and Laurie Stephens (Wenham, Mass.).
Standing skiers: Andrew Haraghey (Enfield, Conn.), Connor Hogan (Foxborough, Mass.), Thomas Walsh (Vail, Colo.) and Spencer Wood (Pittsfield, Vt.).
Keefe and Drugan are both first-time Paralympians and will join many veterans on the U.S. team. Stephens is participating in her fifth Paralympics and Kurka is competing in his third games, according to OutsidePR's announcement.
The U.S. is the most decorated country in Para Alpine Skiing, with 96 gold medals, 91 silvers and 70 bronze.
The Beijing 2022 Winter Paralympic Games begin March 4 and run through March 13.
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