Special Olympics Team Canada 2025
Congratulations to Special Olympics BC's 22 athletes with intellectual disabilities and 13 dedicated volunteers who succeeded at the 2025 Special Olympics World Winter Games in Italy March 8 to 15!
In total, Special Olympics Team Canada earned 116 medals: 39 gold, 35 silver, and 42 bronze. Special Olympics BC athletes contributed 29 medals to this number!
Special Olympics BC athlete Results
Alpine skiing
- Cory Duhaime, SOBC – Delta: Gold (Advanced Super G M06), Gold (Advanced Slalom M07), Silver (Advanced Giant Slalom M07)
- Erin Thom, SOBC – Kimberly/Cranbrook: Silver (Advanced Slalom F06), 4th (Advanced Giant Slalom F05), 7th (Advanced Super G F02)
- Fiona Hall, SOBC – Coquitlam: Bronze (Intermediate Slalom F07), 4th (Intermediate Giant Slalom F08), 6th (Intermediate Super G F02)
- Jesse Jensen, SOBC – Kimberly/Cranbrook: 5th (Advanced Super G M04), 5th (Advanced Slalom M06)
- Kailyn Potomak, SOBC – Langley: Gold (Intermediate Slalom F09), 7th (Intermediate Super G F01)
- Kirsten Haden, SOBC – Vancouver: Bronze (Advanced Slalom F03), 5th (Advanced Giant Slalom F04), 5th (Advanced Super G F03)
- Ron Greenhorn, SOBC – Nanaimo: Bronze (Intermediate Giant Slalom M09), 4th (Intermediate Slalom M06), 7th (Intermediate Super G M02)
- Yorke Parkin, SOBC – Revelstoke: Gold (Advanced Giant Slalom M01), Gold (Advanced Super G M01), Gold (Advanced Slalom M01)
Cross country skiing
- Chantal Chan, SOBC – Vancouver: Gold (4x1k Relay D02), Silver (1k Free Technique F02), 4th (500m Free Technique F02)
- Francis Stanley, SOBC – Kelowna: Gold (10k Free Technique M01), Gold (5k Free Technique M01), Gold (4x1k Relay D01)
- Kelsey Wyse, SOBC – Kelowna: Gold (4x1k Relay D03), 4th (500m Free Technique F01), 4th (2.5K Classical Technique F02), 8th (2.5k Classical Technique)
- Layne Benoit, SOBC – Kimberley/Cranbrook: Gold (4x1k Relay D01), Bronze (1k Free Technique), 6th (2.5k Classical Technique), 4th (2.5k Classical Technique M01)
- Sebastian Gylander, SOBC – Golden: Gold (7.5km Free Technique M01), Gold (4x1k Relay D02), 4th (5k Free Technique M01)
- Tracey Melesko, SOBC – Kelowna: Gold (4x1k Relay D03), 5th (2.5K Free Technique), 6th (1k Free Technique)
Figure skating
- Alexander Pang, SOBC – Vancouver: Bronze (Singles Level 5, mixed division)
- Marc Theriault, SOBC – Surrey: Gold (Singles Level 6, male division)
- Matthew Lai, SOBC – Richmond: Bronze (Singles Level 3, male division)
Snowshoeing
- Ariel Taylor, SOBC – Coquitlam: Silver (100m F09), 4th (4x100m F01), 6th (200m F08)
- Cory Melnychuk, SOBC – Quesnel: 4th (4x100 M02), 4th (100m M04), 6th (400m M07)
- Danielle Pechet, SOBC – Vernon: Bronze (400m F03), 4th (800m F01), 4th (4x100m F01)
- Tony Wilkinson, SOBC – Kelowna: Gold (4x100m M01), Bronze (100m M07), 4th (200m M06)
Download SO Team Canada photos and videos
MEET SOBC's members of Special Olympics Team Canada 2025
| Name | SOBC Local | Resides In |
| Alpine Skiing | ||
| ATHLETES | ||
| Cory Duhaime | Delta | Delta |
| Erin Thom | Kimberley/Cranbrook | Cranbrook |
| Fiona Hall | Coquitlam | Port Moody |
| Jesse Jensen | Kimberley/Cranbrook | Cranbrook |
| Kailyn Potomak | Langley | Langley |
| Kirsten Haden | Vancouver | Vancouver |
| Matthew Bueschkens | Coquitlam | Maple Ridge |
| Ron Greenhorn | Nanaimo | Nanaimo |
| Yorke Parkin | Revelstoke | Revelstoke |
| COACHES | ||
| Mark Schnurr, Head Coach | Coquitlam | New Westminster |
| Misty Pagliaro, Assistant Coach | Kimberley/Cranbrook | Creston |
| Saige Beaumont, Assistant Coach | Revelstoke | Revelstoke |
| Cross Country Skiing | ||
| ATHLETES | ||
| Chantal Chan | Vancouver | Vancouver |
| Francis Stanley | Kelowna | West Kelowna |
| Kelsey Wyse | Kelowna | Kelowna |
| Layne Benoit | Kimberley/Cranbrook | Cranbrook |
| Sebastian Gylander | Golden | Golden |
| Tracey Melesko | Kelowna | Kelowna |
| COACHES | ||
| Annabel Stanley, Head Coach | Kelowna | West Kelowna |
| Les Sigal, Assistant Coach | Vernon | Vernon |
| Ty Wilkinson, Assistant Coach | Kelowna | Kelowna |
| Figure Skating | ||
| ATHLETES | ||
| Alexander Pang | Vancouver | Vancouver |
| Marc Theriault | Surrey | Delta |
| Matthew Lai | Richmond | Richmond |
| COACHES | ||
| Jessica Chapelski, Assistant Coach | Vancouver | Vancouver |
| Snowshoeing | ||
| ATHLETES | ||
| Ariel Taylor | Coquitlam | Coquitlam |
| Cory Melnychuk | Quesnel | Quesnel |
| Danielle Pechet | Vernon | Vernon |
| Tony Wilkinson | Kelowna | Kelowna |
| COACHES | ||
| Tina Giesbrecht, Assistant Coach | Region 7 Coordinator | Burns Lake |
| David Wilkinson, Assistant Coach | Kelowna | Kelowna |
| Maureen Hunter, Assistant Coach | Campbell River | Campbell River |
| Speed Skating | ||
| Donna Bilous, Head Coach | Leadership Council Chair | Abbotsford |
| Leadership and Support Team | ||
| Juli Prokopchuk Brattan, Assistant Chef de Mission | Victoria | |
| Krissy Krnasty, Medical | Vernon | Vernon |
| Training Coaches | ||
| Edward Tai, alpine skiing | ||
| Geoff Lowe, alpine skiing | ||
| Isabelle Schnurr, alpine skiing | ||
| Janice Chan, figure skating | ||
| Janny Jung, snowshoeing | ||
| Kevin Phillips, cross country skiing | ||
| Michael Duhaime, alpine skiing | ||
| Robyn McCormick, snowshoeing | ||
| Seth Conlin, cross country skiing | ||
| Tannis Marshall, figure skating | ||
Read more stories about SOBC's national team members
Visit the #SOTeamCanada25 homepage
"I like being part of a valued group. I want to make myself, my family and my country proud of me. I would like to win at least one gold. ... I want people to know that [people with intellectual disabilities] all deserve a chance. We like to move our bodies and we like to compete. We also like the social interaction Special Olympics provides."
-Alpine skier Jesse Jensen, SOBC athlete for 32 years, competing in the World Games for the first time
More stories & media coverage
- Ron Greenhorn featured by CHEK News
- Okanagan team members featured in the Vernon Morning Star
- Okanagan team members featured in Castanet
- Ron Greenhorn featured in the Nanaimo News Bulletin
- Kootenays team members featured in My East Kootenay Now
- Kelowna team members featured by AM1150
- Marc Theriault featured by the Surrey Now-Leader
- Ron Greenhorn featured by Nanaimo News Now
- Sebastian Gylander featured by Special Olympics Canada
- Marc Theriault featured by Special Olympics Canada
- Matthew Lai featured by Special Olympics Canada
- Jessica Chapelski and Alexander Pang featured by Special Olympics Canada
- Sebastian Gylander featured in The Golden Star
- Francis Stanley featured in Castanet
- Donna Bilous featured in The Abbotsford News
- Health Messenger Alexander Pang on the impact of Special Olympics Healthy Athletes
- Francis Stanley featured by Special Olympics Canada
- Danielle Pechet and family featured by Special Olympics Canada
- Tony, Ty, and David Wilkinson featured by Special Olympics Canada
- Yorke Parkin featured on TSN
- Cory Duhaime featured in the Delta Optimist
- Cory Melnychuk featured in the Quesnel Cariboo Observer
- Danielle Pechet, Les Sigal, and Krissy Krnasty featured in the Vernon Morning Star
- Nanaimo's Ron Greenhorn featured by Black Press Media
- Yorke Parkin and Saige Beaumont featured by the Revelstoke Mountaineer, Castanet, and Special Olympics Canada
"We are so proud of him, he’s worked so hard for so long and overcome so much to get here," says Cory Duhaime's father Michael. “It really is a dream come true for us all. We are so grateful to Special Olympics British Columbia and Special Olympics Canada for providing him with this opportunity to show us all what he can accomplish. It reminds us that the word 'disability' has 'ability' in it, and it’s important that we all recognize and find ways to allow that ability to shine."
Where to watch
TSN ran multi-platform coverage of Special Olympics Team Canada 2025!
- Daily highlights on SportsCentre, showcasing Canada's Special Olympics athletes in action.
- Real-time news updates, medal counts, interviews, and highlight videos on TSN's Special Olympics video hub on TSN.ca and the TSN app.
- TSN's Digital SportsCentre, hosted by Marissa Roberto, featuring must-see clips from World Games correspondent Jesse Pollock and daily medal count updates.
Click here for TSN 2025 Special Olympics World Winter Games schedule
"Being a part of Special Olympics Team Canada means being able to showcase my talents to the world and being an example for the next generation of athletes. ... Having an intellectual disability is not an obstacle, but instead it’s an opportunity to be involved in a great program for sports."
-Snowshoeing athlete Cory Melnychuk, SOBC athlete for 27 years, making his first World Games appearance
Join the movement
Change lives, including yours, by getting involved with the Special Olympics BC sport, youth, and health programs across our province!