Valley paralympics skier Jesse Keefe finished ninth in the Men’s Slalom Standing, 15th in the Giant Slalom Standing and Super-Combined Standing, and 22nd in the Men’s Downhill Standing Para Alpine Skiing events in his first Paralympic competition. Keefe, 17, said he was pleased with his performance and vowed to come back stronger at the next Paralympic games.
“This hill is such a challenging ski environment and it is so different than what I grew up on,” Keefe said on Sunday. “This is easily one of the most difficult courses I have ever skied. A top-15 and top-10 finish at age 17, beating my age by a couple numbers, was a pretty good goal and it’s a really good reason for me to keep going. I still have a lot of time left of training and World Cup experience to come back even stronger at the next Games.”
Keefe lost his right leg below the knee after he was born without an ankle bone. He grew up in a ski town and learned to ski at a young age. He currently is a student at Sun Valley Community School.