He's a man on a mission
B.C.'s Dueck plans to hit the road to connect with Paralympians across the country
If things work out the way Josh Dueck hopes, you just might bump into him and the family next spring on one of Canada's three coastlines.
Fresh from being named Canada's chef de mission for the 2022 Paralympics in Beijing, the retired sit-ski gold medallist unveiled two “pipe dreams” of his that undoubtedly helped secure the sought-after gig.
“I'd like to set up a podcast, Zoom facilitated, to interview all the athletes and coaches, just as an opportunity to get to know them, and then give them a tangible asset they can use as media for their story, for their friends and family, partners and supporters and community,” Dueck said Tuesday from his home in Vernon. “Another one, if travel does open up a little bit come May and June, typically that's a bit of a shoulder season for our winter sport athletes.
“My dream would be to travel coast to coast to coast in my old 1977 travel trailer with my family in tow, and make an effort to stop in each community of all the athletes across Canada to connect with them. I know it's ambitious and it might not be possible if travel restrictions are in place. But I hope there will be some easement of those rules and we can safely achieve that objective to meet and make connections with the communities and support the athletes.
“I'd be willing to put a couple months of skin in the game, and I think it would be a beautiful opportunity for my kids to see the country and meet some of our top athletes, who are some of our best storytellers and ambassadors for humanity, not just for sport.
Dueck and wife Lacey have two children, seven-year-old daughter Nova and four-year-old son Hudson. And, while he's the chef, this is very much a family mission and they're all on board.
“When I got the call it was like OK, here we go. I was a little bit excited, a little bit nervous, there was some trepidation,” said the 39-year-old native of Kimberley.
“When I came home and told my wife, there was nothing but elation from her.”
Dueck has been committed to the betterment of para sport for decades. He was partly paralyzed
in a skiing accident in 2004, and soon after was back on the hill in a sit-ski. After winning a gold and two silver medals at Vancouver 2010 and Sochi 2014, he retired from competition and has been the director of Freestyle B.C. for two years, impacting policy and promoting the sport. He also works as a peer mentor, motivational speaker and ambassador.
“I think that's why they chose me, because there's going to be a certain excitement that I bring to the table,” he said with a chuckle.
The Beijing Paralympics are set for March 4-13, 2022. Canada is expected to compete in all five para winter sports: alpine skiing, nordic skiing, snowboard, hockey and wheelchair curling.
As chef de mission in Beijing, Dueck will be looked upon to promote and celebrate the team, and also to share his experience and guidance with Canada's athletes, coaches and staff. And if there's trouble, he'll be asked to shoot it, just as chef de mission Ozzie Sawicki did at Sochi 2014, where Dueck was an athlete.
“We had every hurdle and hiccup imaginable coming into Sochi,” said Dueck. “We chartered a flight from Munich to Sochi with the U.S. team, and for some odd reason, none of Team Canada's bags arrived. Every other athlete from every other country is on snow, getting their mileage, and Ozzie comes up to our team and says: `You guys are quite familiar with the snow that we've got here, you're going to do better just resting. Let these other guys spend their energy, we've got a full handle on the gear, and we're going to get it here in a couple of days. So just enjoy Sochi. ...' He said we're going to use this to our advantage. … He was calm and confident, cool as a cucumber.”
That kind of leadership is a prerequisite for the chef position, and the CPC is confident that Dueck has it in him.