Para nordic skier Dani Aravich has always loved sports, but never thought there was a place for her to compete longterm "because I was always competing against people who didn't have disabilities," she said.

Born without a left hand and forearm, she never let it define her limits.

The 29-year-old is now set to compete in her second Winter Paralympics and is advocating for the next generation of athletes.

As a kid, Aravich tried nearly every sport and became one of the fastest runners on her high school cross country team before she went on to compete in college. When she was 24, a friend suggested the Paralympics – something she never considered for herself.

" I didn't know enough about the Paralympics to know there was a place for someone like me in it," she explained.

In 2020, Aravich quit her fulltime job with the Utah Jazz basketball team and qualified soon after for the Tokyo Paralympics on Team USA's track and field team in 2021 where she finished 10th in the 400-meter sprint.

The experience changed how she views herself.

"Growing up, I didn't know anyone else really with a physical disability for most of my childhood and … it's been the most eye-opening experience in my life getting to compete in this," Aravich said. "It's the most beautiful space and the most beautiful people that I've ever met."

Given her endurance background, Aravich was invited to enroll in a ski camp to give cross country skiing and biathlon a shot – despite never having stepped on nordic skis before.

"I never felt something so hard aerobically in my life – like getting to a point in a race or in a training session where you're so uncomfortable that it's almost addictive to get back to," she said.

Aravich's training eventually led her to qualifying for the 2022 Winter Paralympics in Beijing where she became one of the few athletes to compete at both the Summer and Winter Paralympics.

Her Paralympic experience propelled her on a journey of advocacy to amplify parasports in mainstream culture through social media and her media collective, Culxtured.

" I have no idea if I'll ever win a medal," Aravich said. "I don't know what's gonna happen at the Paralympics, this Games or the next cycle."

But what she said she can control is "how much I push the Paralympics in every conversation I have."

" What really matters is making sure the next kid with a disability sees that there's a place for them in parasport."

Nicknamed the "Biathlon bandit" for her western roots and her rapid rise in the sport, Aravich has found her place. As she competes in the Paralympics for the third time, her definition of victory looks a little different.

"However I do on the field of play, that is what it is. But if more people tune into the Paralympics than ever, then we're doing something right," she said. "That's the win."

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残奥北欧滑雪运动员丹妮·阿拉维奇表示，自己一直热爱体育运动，但从未想过能长期参与竞技比赛，"因为我过去总是与健全人同场竞技"。

她天生缺失左手和前臂，却从未让这成为定义自己极限的枷锁。

这位29岁的运动员即将第二次征战冬残奥会，同时积极为下一代运动员发声。

阿拉维奇（Aravich）幼时几乎尝试过所有运动项目，高中时成为越野跑队速度最快的选手之一，随后进入大学继续参赛。24岁时，一位朋友向她推荐了残奥会——这个她从未考虑过的选择。

她解释道：“当时我对残奥会了解不多，不知道自己这样的人也能参与其中。”

2020年，阿拉维奇（Aravich）辞去了犹他爵士篮球队的全职工作，随后不久便入选美国田径队，获得参加2021年东京残奥会的资格，并在400米短跑项目中获得第十名。

这段经历改变了她对自己的看法。

阿拉维奇表示："在我的成长过程中，童年的大部分时光里，我都不认识其他真正有身体残疾的人……而参与这项比赛是我人生中最开阔眼界的经历。这是我见过的最美好的空间，也是我遇到过的最美好的人们。"

鉴于阿维奇的耐力基础，尽管此前从未接触过北欧滑雪，她仍受邀参加滑雪训练营，尝试越野滑雪和冬季两项运动。

她表示：“我这辈子从未在体能上感受过如此艰难的挑战——就像在比赛或训练中达到某个临界点，那种极度不适感会让你近乎上瘾地想要再次体验。”

阿维奇的刻苦训练最终使她成功获得2022年北京冬季残奥会的参赛资格，成为少数同时参加过夏季和冬季残奥会的运动员之一。

她的残奥会经历推动她走上倡导之路，通过社交媒体及其媒体平台Culxtured，在主流文化中提升残疾人体育的影响力。

阿拉维奇表示：“我不知道自己能否赢得奖牌，也不清楚这届或下届残奥会上会发生什么。”

但她表示，自己能掌控的是"在每次交谈中推广残奥会的力度"。

真正重要的是确保下一个残疾儿童看到残障体育中有属于他们的位置。

阿拉维奇因其西部背景和在该项目中的迅速崛起而被昵称为“冬季两项强盗”，如今她已找到了自己的位置。第三次参加残奥会的她，对胜利的定义有了些许不同。

“无论我在赛场上的表现如何，那都只是结果本身。但如果有比以往更多的人关注残奥会，那我们就做对了，”她说道，“这才是真正的胜利。”

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