Figure skater Marc Theriault won gold in Austria, while fellow Surrey athlete Susan Wang (below) won a bronze medal in skiing’s Super G competition.

Figure skater Marc Theriault won gold in Austria, while fellow Surrey athlete Susan Wang (below) won a bronze medal in skiing’s Super G competition.

Surrey Special Olympians on podium at World Games

Marc Theriault and Susan Wang win medals at winter competition.

A pair of Special Olympians – and one coach – are back home in Surrey after a successful trip to Austria, host country for the 2017 Special Olympics World Winter Games.

The event, held March 14-24, saw veteran Special Olympic athlete Marc Theriault – whose 21-year career has included eight World Games, including summer sports – win a gold medal in single level 6 figure skating, and skier Susan Wang won a bronze medal on the slopes, in the Alpine Intermediate Super G competition.

Wang also had a fourth-place finish in the Intermediate Giant Slalom two days after her third-place victory.

Figure skating coach Elizabeth Roman, also from Surrey, was in Austria with Team Canada, which included a total of 16 athletes and eight coaches from across B.C.

Overall, B.C. athletes won a total of 11 gold medals, 10 silvers and five bronze.

“This truly was a great experience and I’ll cherish it forever,” Wang said in a story posted on the Special Olympics BC website.

“I loved competing with people from all over the world.”

Peace Arch News