For about 15 years, Logan Lariviere of the Greater Sudbury community of Lively, has dedicated himself to cross-country skiing. That sustained effort has now yielded a monumental reward: a spot to represent Canada at the upcoming Paralympic Winter Games. Reflecting on the official selection, Logan shared a measured reaction with CTV News. “I had a good feeling of me going, but wasn’t getting my hopes up until after,” he said. Logan also noted a delay in realizing his achievement. “As soon as I found out, it didn’t really hit me until about a week ago when they announced it to the public and at the announcement, that’s where it really slowly kicked in, like, yeah, this is happening and I’m going,” he added. Parental support paved the way Lariviere’s parents, Andrew and Melissa Lariviere, expressed their own sense of awe after the announcement. “We’re still kind of in shock about it, even though we knew the potential of it happening,” they said. “I don’t think it’ll actually really hit us until we’re at the event watching (him) ski in Italy.” The pair emphasized their philosophy of encouraging Logan’s active childhood. “Sometimes when you have a child like that, you want to call them and keep them close – but we decided that we wanted Logan to try whatever,” they said. “(He tried) every sport you could think of and skiing seems to be the one that stuck.” Guide partnership is key Competing in the visually impaired category, Logan has worked with his guide, Joe Hutten, for about a year. “The hardest thing about being a visually impaired skier is to have, to find, successful guides that can ski along with you,” said Melissa. Hutten detailed the foundation of their successful partnership speaking with CTV News. “I think we work very well together on and off the ski trails, which definitely helps in building that relationship as well and having that comfort level,” he said. “Then the trust in him to me, that I know what he’s capable of so that we’re able to kind of work at that highest level possible.” Community rallies In final preparation, Logan has focused on meticulous training. “Just staying healthy, getting the time and effort into training where basically our levels that we’re going to be out racing, it’s just making sure we stay at the proper level,” he said talking about his current routine. His hometown of Lively is rallying behind him, including a community raffle to support his journey. “Wanting to be able to get behind them and help support Logan make his dream a reality by going to the Paralympics, like it’s a lot of money and if the community is able to help rally around, like, why not?” said raffle organizer Stacy Paajanen. Logan departs for Italy to compete at the Paralympic Winter Games in March.
