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CORTINA D’AMPEZZO, Italy — The smile never wavered on the podium for Brenna Huckaby, even as uncertainty about her Paralympic future continues.
Huckaby claimed a bronze medal in the women’s banked slalom at Cortina Para Snowboard Park, tying Cécile Hernandez as USA’s most decorated snowboarder with her fifth career medal. But a fight for the return of her classification remains the biggest concern.
Most Paralympians compete in what are known as classifications, which group athletes together with similar impairments in an attempt to create a somewhat level playing field. At a June 2019 International Paralympics Committee Governing Board meeting, it was decided that the SB-LL1 classification — featuring athletes with above-knee amputations — would be a non-viable women’s snowboard event in the 2022 Beijing Winter Paralympics.
That is Huckaby’s classification. So, she applied to participate in either the men’s SB-LL1 classification or the women’s SB-LL2 — a classification for athletes with a smaller degree of impairment compared with those in SB-LL1. She ended up competing in the latter — and still won a gold medal in that event in Beijing.
Huckaby’s classification was not reinstated ahead of 2026, and she competed in the below-knee amputation class again, meaning she was at a significant disadvantage when it comes to balance, power and movement.
“I have to go above and beyond, just to stand a chance,” Huckaby said. “I'll never not work hard, but I think it's really hard when you do put in so much time, so much effort, so much energy and your peak is going to be lower than people with less impairments. And it's a mental challenge.”
Huckaby said she is the only above-the-knee amputation female snowboarder to compete in the last two Games after the classifications were condensed. For that reason, her future in the Paralympics is up in the air.
“If FIS and the IPC isn't going to change that, they don't deserve me,” Huckaby said. “I'm going to figure out something else to get more amputee women in this sport above the knees.”
She hopes 2026 is the last Games that she has to share a podium with Delson, a true SB-LL2 competitor, as she vies for her own classification back. What would she like to see?
“Both gold medalists next year,” Huckaby said.
Huckaby’s third-place finish at Cortina Para Snowboard Park meant she was dethroned from her title by fellow USA teammate Kate Delson. Though the 1:03.98 time earned a podium finish for the fifth time in her Paralympic career, it was Huckaby’s race earlier in the week that brought the biggest lesson forth.
Huckaby competed in the snowboard cross event Sunday, March 8, coming away in sixth place with her family in attendance. It was a disappointing result for the three-time gold medalist who sits tied for the most triumphs in the Paralympic sport.
That result, though, was the driving lesson for Lilah and Sloan — Brenna’s two daughters.
“It showed that you could lose with grace and be so proud of the competitor that you were that day, even if you don't make it on the podium,” Huckaby said.
The race hung over her for the rest of the week.
Huckaby’s face stayed lit up as she watched Delson take gold in her first Games; her smile stayed wide, her morale boosted. But it wasn’t that way all week. Realizing that lesson herself helped bring the smiles back out.
“It's because I allow myself to feel my feelings, even when they're not great,” Huckaby said. “And it just makes room for these feelings of happiness.”
Trevor McGee is a reporter for the Paralympics Project, a partnership between USA TODAY Network and the College of Communication and Information at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Why USA snowboarder Brenna Huckaby faces Paralympic uncertainty
Continue reading...
Huckaby claimed a bronze medal in the women’s banked slalom at Cortina Para Snowboard Park, tying Cécile Hernandez as USA’s most decorated snowboarder with her fifth career medal. But a fight for the return of her classification remains the biggest concern.
Most Paralympians compete in what are known as classifications, which group athletes together with similar impairments in an attempt to create a somewhat level playing field. At a June 2019 International Paralympics Committee Governing Board meeting, it was decided that the SB-LL1 classification — featuring athletes with above-knee amputations — would be a non-viable women’s snowboard event in the 2022 Beijing Winter Paralympics.
That is Huckaby’s classification. So, she applied to participate in either the men’s SB-LL1 classification or the women’s SB-LL2 — a classification for athletes with a smaller degree of impairment compared with those in SB-LL1. She ended up competing in the latter — and still won a gold medal in that event in Beijing.
Huckaby’s classification was not reinstated ahead of 2026, and she competed in the below-knee amputation class again, meaning she was at a significant disadvantage when it comes to balance, power and movement.
“I have to go above and beyond, just to stand a chance,” Huckaby said. “I'll never not work hard, but I think it's really hard when you do put in so much time, so much effort, so much energy and your peak is going to be lower than people with less impairments. And it's a mental challenge.”
Huckaby said she is the only above-the-knee amputation female snowboarder to compete in the last two Games after the classifications were condensed. For that reason, her future in the Paralympics is up in the air.
“If FIS and the IPC isn't going to change that, they don't deserve me,” Huckaby said. “I'm going to figure out something else to get more amputee women in this sport above the knees.”
She hopes 2026 is the last Games that she has to share a podium with Delson, a true SB-LL2 competitor, as she vies for her own classification back. What would she like to see?
“Both gold medalists next year,” Huckaby said.
Lesson Huckaby’s children learned during Paralympics week
Huckaby’s third-place finish at Cortina Para Snowboard Park meant she was dethroned from her title by fellow USA teammate Kate Delson. Though the 1:03.98 time earned a podium finish for the fifth time in her Paralympic career, it was Huckaby’s race earlier in the week that brought the biggest lesson forth.
Huckaby competed in the snowboard cross event Sunday, March 8, coming away in sixth place with her family in attendance. It was a disappointing result for the three-time gold medalist who sits tied for the most triumphs in the Paralympic sport.
That result, though, was the driving lesson for Lilah and Sloan — Brenna’s two daughters.
“It showed that you could lose with grace and be so proud of the competitor that you were that day, even if you don't make it on the podium,” Huckaby said.
The race hung over her for the rest of the week.
Huckaby’s face stayed lit up as she watched Delson take gold in her first Games; her smile stayed wide, her morale boosted. But it wasn’t that way all week. Realizing that lesson herself helped bring the smiles back out.
“It's because I allow myself to feel my feelings, even when they're not great,” Huckaby said. “And it just makes room for these feelings of happiness.”
Trevor McGee is a reporter for the Paralympics Project, a partnership between USA TODAY Network and the College of Communication and Information at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Why USA snowboarder Brenna Huckaby faces Paralympic uncertainty
Continue reading...
