McKeever will be appearing at his fourth Games and will be looking to cement his place as one of the all-time greats by building on his seven gold medals, which included two at Salt Lake City 2002, two at Turin 2006 and a hat-trick of golds on home soil in Vancouver four years ago.

McKeever will be joined by an athlete with even more experience in the form of Colette Bourgonje, chasing an 11th medal in what will be her 10th Paralympic Games.

Bourgonje competed at the 1992, 1996 and 2000 Summer Paralympics, winning four bronze medals, while she has three silver and three bronze medals from her Winter Paralympic appearances in 1992, 1994, 1998, 2002, 2006 and last time out in Vancouver.

Paralympic veterans Chris Klebl and Mark Arendz will also add experience to the squad.

Brian McKeever (right) and brother Robin celebrate one of three gold medals at Vancouver 2010 ©Getty Images



Former world champion Klebl, who competed at Turin 2006 and Vancouver 2010 for the United States, will be donning the maple leaf for the first time in Paralympic competition in Sochi, while Arendz will be expected to be a major medal threat as he looks to continue his good form which saw him pick up a World Championship title in 2013.

Brittany Hudak, Caroline Bisson, Yves Bourque, Sébastien Fortier, Louis Fortin, Margarita Gorbounova and Robbi Weldon complete the talented 11-strong athlete line-up while Erik Carleton, Graham Nishikawa and Andrea Bundon will head to Sochi as guides for the team.

The team will be under the guidance of coaches Robin McKeever and Kaspar Wirz.

"These athletes represent one of the most talented groups of Para-Nordic athletes that we have ever sent to a Games," said Mike Edwards, team leader and assistant high-performance director at Cross Country Canada.

"This team has achieved great success in the competitive culture of excellence we have created at Cross Country Canada, having won medals at national championships, World Cups, World Championships and the Paralympics.

"Depth is key to any podium attack and Canada is well positioned to continue this success well into the future."

Can Colette Bourgonje finally bag a gold medal in Sochi in what will be her 10th Paralympic Games? ©Getty Images



Canada will head to Sochi looking to at least match their showing at Vancouver 2010, where they finished in third place on the overall medal standings securing 10 gold medals, five silver and four bronze.

"As we close in on Sochi's Paralympic Games, it is exciting see the announcement of a Para-Nordic team comprised of new talent and veteran performers," said Team Canada's Chef de Mission, Ozzie Sawicki.

"Our Para-Nordic athletes will be up for the challenge as they compete against a strong field of nations in Sochi and I have extreme confidence in their ability to bring home podium results in support of Canada's goal to be a top three gold medal nation at the 2014 Paralympic Winter Games."

The Sochi 2014 Paralympic Winter Games is due to get underway on March 7 and the full Canadian Paralympic squad will be finalised later this month.

Contact the writer of this story at [email protected]


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