Ralph Green
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Ralph Green didn't give up after he lost a leg following a random street shooting. He learned how to ski and he's learning how to win. Coaches say he's fearless and a hard worker. He's making up for a lot of lost time. Green is the first African-American man to make the U.S. Paralympics Alpine Skiing National Team. Green had somewhat of a lackluster performance at both the 2006 Paralympic Winter Games in Torino as well as the Paralympic Winter Games in Vancouver.
Though Green calls his 2007-2008 season a hiatus, as well as a time to recover from injury, he still couldn't manage to keep himself from the slopes. After some intense triathlon training on his bike in the off-season, Green competed in some World Cup competitions during the season and felt like he was excelling in his sport even more than he had before.
A high school quarterback and multi-sport athlete, Green was gunned down at 16 while he and a friend walked along a street in Brooklyn. His left leg was amputated at the hip. He was introduced a year later to skiing in the Poconos and it didn't do much for him. After high school, he moved to Winter Park for three months, but eventually returned home...only to go back to Winter Park and its excellent ski program - "and that's when it stuck. I said, ‘I'm skiing until I'm the best.' And that was [in 2000]." He explained, "I'm not scared to go fast, not scared to crash, but I learned you have to finish and that's what I'm doing now. Fear is not a factor."
Major Achievements:
- 2010: Team member – Paralympic Games, Vancouver, Canada
- 2008: Fourth place, slalom – The Hartford Ski Spectacular, Breckenridge, Colorado
- 2006:
- 2005: Four top-15 finishes in World Cup competition
- 2004: Two top-10 finishes in World Cup competition
- 2004: 14th place, Super G – World Championships
