Winning a gold medal in the Paralympics 20-km cross country event must be a bitter sweet moment for Brian McKeever. As a visually impaired athlete, McKeever was only hours away from skiing for his country in the Olympic Games, when he was told by his coach he would not be competing.
Less than a month later, McKeever stands atop the world at the Paralympics after winning Canada's first ever Paralympic gold medal on home soil.
It isn't all smiles and congratulations for McKeever, he still has a foul taste in his mouth from the Vancouver Winter Olympics and a goal in his mind for the 2014 Sochi Olympics.
What is sad about this, is the media coverage surrounding McKeever is not for his amazing accomplishment in the Paralympics, it is because he was shunned at the Olympic Games.
McKeever is the kind of athlete children should be looking up to. He aspires to be the best, and in fact, is the best in his sport. Brian McKeever's gold medal at the 2010 Paralympics shouldn't be thought of as second rate; his first Paralympic gold on home soil is every bit as important as the Olympic Gold won by Alexandre Bilodeau.
I wouldn't count McKeever out just yet. If you know anything about the Paralympics, you'll understand that overcoming odds is just a part of the business. For McKeever, despite his visual impairment, the 2014 Olympic Games are still very much in sight.
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