Kiwi Skier Adam Hall Competes in 6th Paralympics at 20 Years

Twenty years after his first Paralympic Games, Adam Hall is back on Italian snow ready to prove that dedication has no expiration date.

The New Zealand alpine skier is competing in his sixth Winter Paralympic Games in Milano Cortina, returning to the same country where his Paralympic journey began in Turin 2006. At a time when most athletes have long retired, Hall is still at the top of his game and chasing his sixth Paralympic medal.

"It's pretty amazing to think that I have lasted all this time," Hall told Sport Nation before his events began. "Twenty years down the track we're back in Italy where it started for me."

Hall was born with spina bifida, a condition affecting the spine and spinal cord. But he's never let it define his limits. He discovered skiing as a young South Islander and found something special on the slopes.

"From an early age it was something that I found that I could excel at amongst my peers," Hall explained. "I found the independence and the passion and that freedom that we all talk about when you're up there on the mountains."

That freedom turned into excellence. Hall became a two-time Paralympic gold medalist and earned the title of 2018 Halberg Para Athlete of the Year. His longevity in the sport speaks to years of commitment that most people never see.

"There's nothing I can do now that's going to make a difference," Hall said. "It's those decisions that we've made and those things that we've done over the last three or four or 15 years that make those differences."

Why This Inspires

Hall's perspective on disability challenges common narratives about limitations. "In some ways when you're born with a disability, for me spina bifida, I know no difference," he said. "It's all I've ever known."

His approach to tough training days offers a lesson anyone can use. "Sure you have your ups and downs," he acknowledged. "It's those days when you get up and you keep pushing towards those challenges and you break them down and you feel a lot better afterwards."

Hall competes alongside fellow New Zealand Paralympic gold medalist Corey Peters, who finished fifth in the Men's Downhill earlier in the Games. The two have become like brothers after years traveling the circuit together. "We spend more time together than what we do with our families," Hall said.

Their bond reflects the deeper meaning Hall finds in competition. "When you get to a level where you can represent your country and your communities and your family and friends and everybody that's helped you get to where you are, it's a pretty special feeling."

After two decades of excellence, Hall is proving that the only limits that matter are the ones we place on ourselves.