PYEONGCHANG – Mark Arendz added to his medal total on Wednesday.
The 28-year-old from Hartsville, P.E.I. tied for bronze in a thrilling finish in the men’s standing spring final. It was the first Paralympic cross-country medal for Arendz, who previously won silver and bronze in biathlon at the 2018 Paralympic Winter Games.
Arendz appeared to have a shot at gold in the race before Kazakhstan’s Alexandr Kolyadin surged past the front three to claim gold. From there, Arendz battled it out with Finland’s Ilkka Tuomisto, with both skiers sharing third place in a photo finish.
“Sitting there in the finish waiting for the results of the photo finish, I was just hoping for a tie,” said Arendz. “It was a really good race, but I made a mistake down the finishing stretch switching to try and find a faster track, and that may have cost me the whole race.
“I came here for medals in biathlon, and was hoping to get my first one in cross-country. To come away with my first bronze in cross-country skiing means a lot. I couldn’t be happier.”
