After silver medal success with his guide Robert Poth, the British duo aim for more glory in the slalom events
N
eil Simpson and his guide Robert Poth won silver at the Winter Paralympics on Tuesday, the first medal for Great Britain at these Games. But to watch the athletes in visually impaired alpine skiing descend the slopes of the Dolomites at speeds of up to 100 km/h is to be strongly reminded that everyone needs at least another medal, just for being brave enough to do it in the first place.
Talk to the 23-year-old Simpson, however, and the concept of taking one’s life into one’s hands doesn’t come into the equation. Born with the condition nystagmus, which causes involuntary eye movements, he has been skiing since he was four, first on the dry slopes in Aberdeen, then at the Glenshee resort, before competing in national competition aged 16. “I think it’s something that’s never really fazed me”, he says. “It’s just a really fun sport to participate in.”
Simpson learned to ski alongside his brother Andrew, who also acted as his sole guide for many years, including during the Beijing Games four years ago when the pair returned with Britain’s only gold medal in the VI downhill. They both received MBEs in the queen’s birthday honours that year, suggesting Her Majesty understood the scale of their achievement. When Andrew broke a leg a year later, Poth joined the team and he will be Simpson’s guide in their two remaining events, which increasingly look like Britain’s best prospects for further success.
