Brittany Hudak (born June 2, 1993) is a Canadian

biathlete The biathlon is a winter sport that combines cross-country skiing and rifle shooting. It is treated as a race, with contestants skiing through a cross-country trail whose distance is divided into shooting rounds. The shooting rounds are not ti ...

and cross-country skier.

Early life

Hudak was born in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan with only one arm. She grew up participating in

cross-country running Cross country running is a sport in which teams and individuals run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain such as dirt or grass. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and earth, pass through woodlands and open cou ...

and

track and field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a ru ...

. In 2011, at the age of 18, she was introduced to the sport and Paralympics by a former Paralympian 2014 teammate

Colette Bourgonje Colette Bourgonje (''ber-gon-yah''; born January 17, 1962) is a Canadian Paralympic Games, Paralympic cross-country skiing (sport), cross-country skier and athlete of Métis heritage. She has won four bronze medals in Summer Paralympics and medals ...

. She never heard of the sport of Paralympic Nordic skiing. Hudak was told about the opportunity to compete against other disabled athletes on a more level playing field. She acknowledged that it wasn't easy at first, but was intrigued enough to keep going. She started out competing in Saskatchewan.

Career

In 2014, after only two-years in the sport, she beat one other athlete for a spot on Team Canada for the

2014 Winter Paralympics The 2014 Winter Paralympics (), the 11th Paralympic Winter Games, and also more generally known as the Sochi 2014 Paralympic Winter Games, were an international multi-sport event for athletes with disabilities governed by the International Par ...

Sochi, Russia Sochi ( rus, Сочи, p=ˈsotɕɪ, a=Ru-Сочи.ogg, from – ''seaside'') is the largest resort city in Russia. The city is situated on the Sochi River, along the Black Sea in the North Caucasus of Southern Russia, with a population ...

. Hudak was 2014-15 World Cup Overall Cross-Country Champion. In December 2017, as part of Team Canada, she won bronze at the para-Nordic World Cup. In 2019, at the 13th

World Para Nordic Skiing Championships The World Para Nordic Skiing Championships, known before 30 November 2016 as the IPC Biathlon and Cross-Country Skiing World Championships, along with the Winter Paralympic Games, are the most prestigious level of international competition in Para ...

Prince George, British Columbia Prince George is a city in British Columbia, Canada, situated at the confluence of the Fraser River, Fraser and Nechako River, Nechako rivers. The city itself has a population of 76,708; the metro census agglomeration has a population of 89,490 ...

, she won silver in the mixed relay. At the

2018 Winter Paralympics The 2018 Winter Paralympics (), the 12th Paralympic Winter Games, and also more generally known as the PyeongChang 2018 Paralympic Winter Games, were an international multi-sport event for athletes with disabilities governed by the Internation ...

, she won a bronze medal in the women's 12.5 kilometres biathlon event, which was her first Paralympic medal in her career. During the 2021-2022 World Para Nordic Skiing World Cup season in December 2021, it made a stop in

Canmore, Alberta Canmore is a List of towns in Alberta, town in Alberta, Canada, located approximately west of Calgary near the southeast boundary of Banff National Park. It is located in the Bow Valley within Alberta's Rockies, Alberta's Rocky Mountains. The to ...

. Hudak won for four gold and a silver. She won two golds and a silver in women's standing cross-country and two golds in biathlon. At the

2022 Winter Paralympics The 2022 Winter Paralympics (), also known as XIII Paralympic Winter Games, commonly known as Beijing 2022 (), were an international winter multi-sport parasports event held in Beijing, China, from 4 to 13 March 2022. This was the 13th Winter ...

, Hudak captured her first medal of the games by winning bronze in the 15 km classical standing.

References

External links

* * 1993 births Living people Canadian female cross-country skiers Canadian female biathletes Paralympic cross-country skiers for Canada Paralympic biathletes for Canada Paralympic bronze medalists for Canada Medalists at the 2018 Winter Paralympics Cross-country skiers at the 2018 Winter Paralympics Biathletes at the 2018 Winter Paralympics Sportspeople from Prince Albert, Saskatchewan Paralympic medalists in biathlon Biathletes at the 2014 Winter Paralympics Cross-country skiers at the 2022 Winter Paralympics Medalists at the 2022 Winter Paralympics 21st-century Canadian sportswomen {{Canada-crosscountry-skiing-bio-stub