After a stay in Åre in 2021 together with his father Lasse Eriksson, the Canadian and parade debutant Kalle Eriksson, who has dual citizenship, began to lose his eyesight. He says he was there and trained with Swedish para-national team skiers Ebba Årsjö, Aaron Lindström and Arvid Skoglund.
– I stood at the start and didn’t have any sunglasses on. “The sun burned out my eyes,” says Kalle Eriksson.
Over time, his eyesight became worse and worse. Today, the 21-year-old only has six percent of his peripheral vision after a retinal injury.
– I didn’t think that I would be visually impaired for the rest of my life, but unfortunately it turned out that way.
Before the event He played ice hockey and attended the automotive program.
– I wanted to become a mechanic and work on my family farm. But all of that disappeared at once. Then I moved back to Canada. It was hard when I started losing my eyesight. “It was a very dark time in my life,” he says.
Kalle Eriksson’s father Lasse is active in para sports and is the coach of the Alpine para national team in Canada. A year after the accident, Kalle took up para sports herself.
– My father has been working in para sports for 17 years, it was an easy start. Everything became easier; It’s fun and very inviting. Before that I only skated freestyle, but never took part in competitions.
The alpine skier was immediately enthusiastic and success came quickly. He achieved several World Cup podiums early on and at his first World Cup last year in Maribor, Slovenia, he won his first championship medals.
Four years after Kalle Eriksson started his project, he is now celebrating success in his debut at the Paralympics in Cortina. The Swedish-Canadian, who leads all disciplines, has so far won two medals together with mountain guide Sierra Smith.
– Before the championship it was really just about having fun and enjoying the moment. Now that we’re on the podium it’s a lot more fun. It’s crazy that we can come here. I’m looking forward to the rest of the championship and the coming years. I didn’t think it would happen so quickly, I’m very happy.
Smith and Eriksson have been partners since 2023 and won their first World Cup victory together in slalom in February 2024.
“For the last four years I have dedicated all my time to skiing, but without her it is not possible and I am very grateful to her,” says Kalle Eriksson.
25-year-old Sierra Smith adds:
– I honestly think it’s the teamwork and the trust we have in each other, what Kalle is doing behind me, and his trust in me that is remarkable. That we can only go down the mountain with full confidence in what we are going to do.
Eriksson has grown up in Canada with a Canadian mother and a Swedish father. If you ask him, the chances that he will one day compete in the blue and yellow suit are not very high.
– I have lived in Canada almost all my life. It feels right to compete for Canada. But I love Sweden and have lots of family and friends there and am happy about all the cheering. “Since I’m half Swedish, you can probably see it as a kind of half medal for Sweden,” he says.
Read more:
The family in which all five siblings practiced para sports
The partner followed the medal race: “Now I can breathe deeply”
