On Monday in South Korea, Calgary-born Cassie Sharpe became the first Olympic halfpipe ski champion in Canadian history.
Sharpe, a freestyle skier raised in Comox, B.C., achieved a dream that may not have been possible without the passion and persistence of another skier: the late Sarah Burke.
Burke was a multiple Winter X Games gold medalist who lobbied successfully to get the sport into the 2014 Sochi Olympics. Tragically she died two years before Sochi, after training run accident.
WATCH: Cassie Sharpe describes the moment she knew she had won gold – and decided to do a victory lap
Sharpe dedicated her gold medal win to Burke on Monday.
Calgary’s Warren Shouldice, a retired Olympic freestyle skier, knew Burke well.
“Halfpipe is an Olympic sport because of Sarah Burke and now for Cassie to have won a gold medal and dedicate it to Sarah, it has kind of come full circle,” Shouldice said.
“Sarah was huge for the sport and she is very missed.”
Sharpe’s gold medal victory is being celebrated at WinSport in Calgary, the only Olympic-sized halfpipe in Canada.
Sharpe was a member of the WinSport academy for a couple of seasons and did her final Olympic training there in January and February.
“Having an academy athlete graduate through the national and become an Olympic gold medalist is really phenomenal,” WinSport vice president of sport Bernie Asbell said.
There could be more halfpipe medals on the way this week for Canada. Calgary’s Noah Bowman and Edmonton’s Mike Riddle, who both train at WinSport, have qualified for the men’s halfpipe final Wednesday evening in Pyeongchang.
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