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When rapid vision loss changed the course of her life at 15, Georgia Gunew was forced to rethink her future in sport. A former hockey player and keen show jumper, Georgia found a new calling in Para Alpine Skiing, going on to represent Australia at the 2026 Milano Cortina Paralympic Winter Games.
When rapid vision loss changed the course of her life at 15, Georgia Gunew was forced to rethink her future in sport. A former hockey player and keen show jumper, Georgia found a new calling in Para Alpine Skiing, going on to represent Australia at Milano Cortina Paralympic Winter Games.
Growing up in Brisbane, Gunew’s only snow experience was family ski holidays. After reaching out to Snow Australia, she returned to the slopes at 16 as a Para athlete. “I had a crack when I was 16…and I was like, I love this,” she says. Two years later, despite the setback of COVID-19, she returned with renewed focus, competing in New Zealand and joining the national team by 2023.
Para alpine skiing for vision-impaired athletes requires a delicate balance of skill and trust. While Gunew skis alone, her guide, Ethan Jackson, provides real-time instructions through Bluetooth communication.
“Swapping from skiing by yourself to having to put all of your trust in another person as you’re flying down the hill was a huge change for me,” she says. “It was pretty scary to start with, but I was very brave back then.” That trust has become the foundation of their partnership.
Training off the slopes is just as crucial. Gunew works closely with the Queensland Academy of Sport (QAS) through its Para Unit, supported by an expert team including strength and conditioning, physiotherapy, nutrition and wellbeing specialists.
QAS Senior Strength and Conditioning Coach Cameron Lane explains:
“Georgia and I have been working together since the QAS kicked off the Para Unit in 2025. We’re doing some really good work in the gym trying to get her stronger, fitter, faster, more resilient so that when she transitions down to Jindabyne to do a lot of her training down there that she is in a position where she can ski really well.”
Lower body strength and power are critical for a skier travelling at more than 100 kilometres an hour. Building that strength capacity ensures Georgia can handle repeated high-intensity runs and remain resilient across long training blocks and international campaigns.
“What we’re working on in the gym is trying to develop that strength capacity so that when she goes and trains, she can spend extended periods of time on the slope.”
Collaboration is central to her preparation. Lane describes the relationship with Snow Australia and on-snow coaches:
“We work closely with Snow Australia to make sure we’re all on the same page to support Georgia’s performance, to make sure that we’re all singing the same tune and we’re all on the same pathway towards getting Georgia better.”
Balancing international competition with being based in Brisbane brings challenges. Gunew spends up to eight months away from home, relying on routines and mental preparation to stay focused.
“I think it’s probably one of the biggest challenges of winter sports,” she explains.
With the Milano Cortina Winter Paralympic Games approaching, her focus is clear: “We have the big goal, obviously, of the Games, but it’s every single day.”
“I’m so looking forward to it, but we have to treat it like any other race. So I’m just going to keep sticking with my process, goals and make sure I have all of my ducks in a row for when we get there and hopefully can ski the best I can ski.”
Now officially Paralympics bound, Gunew will take that trust, preparation and resilience to the world stage in Milano Cortina.
Having rebuilt her sporting life after sudden vision loss, she hopes her journey inspires others facing unexpected challenges.
“If you can find a little bit of joy (in sport) it can be something to look forward to, I think it’s a really incredible thing. You never know if you’re going to like it unless you give it a go.”
