Carol Berry (Whitlam, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I rise today to congratulate Ethan Jackson, who lives in Kanahooka in my electorate of Whitlam, for being selected to represent Australia at the upcoming 2026 Paralympic Winter Games. This weekend, Ethan will be making his Paralympics debut as a sighted guide for vision-impaired para alpine skier Georgia Gunew, who is also making her Paralympics debut. Georgia and Ethan will compete in the para alpine skiing, giant slalom and slalom events, which involves the pair skiing together at almost 100 kilometres per hour down a steep course. This requires not just great athletic ability but an extraordinary amount of courage and trust.

Ethan began training as a skier when he was just 10 years old. He was a national-level slalom and giant slalom skier about a decade ago, however repeated injuries in this tough sport led to his early retirement. Ethan began coaching other skiers and then he heard that Paralympic skier Patrick Jensen needed a guide for the 2022-23 World Cup season. A year later, Ethan began guiding Georgia and their partnership has blossomed. Georgia and Ethan achieved their first podium result at a World Cup event in Switzerland in 2024 and repeated that result again in 2025. I wish Georgia and Ethan all the very best as they proudly represent Australia at the 2026 Paralympic Winter Games.

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