Mark Arendz is one of Canada's elite Para-Nordic athletes.
At last month's World Cup stop in Wisconsin, Arendz won four silver and a gold in the biathlon sprint.
“It was for me, five races in seven days which is a pretty hectic schedule but once I arrived there I was feeling good, I was feeling great, strong and I went from there. Four silver and a gold in the end was an incredible week for me,” said Arendz.
Arendz grew up skiing in Prince Edward Island.
When he was just seven, he lost his arm while trying to fix a piece of machinery on the family farm.
“Fortunately they were able to save just enough of the stump just above the elbow and then they had to amputate the rest unfortunately,” said Arendz. “My stump is long enough so that I can use a prosthetic and use that prosthetic to help me in everyday needs or even in my sports.”
Arendz uses a prosthetic to shoot and trains with able bodied athletes to improve his skills.
“When I race Para-Nordic I use an air rifle and with Para-Nordic with one hand I have this little spring that sits just under my rifle and holds the rifle up and then I use my right hand as a normal shooter would,” said Arendz.
His move to Canmore to train has definitely paid off as he currently leads the overall World Cup standings and is a favourite for next year in Sochi.
“Everything I do I try to challenge that side of me. Challenge the balance. Challenge everything else and become, just be able to live with it and now progress to high performance sport,” said Arendz.
For his determination and excellence, Mark Arendz is the CTV Calgary Athlete of the Week for Friday, February 1, 2013.
