Lauren Woolstencroft (born November 24, 1981, in

Calgary Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, makin ...

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

)The Province
"Woolstencroft's electric performance"
Damian Inwood, 21 March 2010, (accessed 21 March 2010) is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

alpine skier Alpine skiing, or downhill skiing, is the pastime of sliding down snow-covered slopes on skis with fixed-heel bindings, unlike other types of skiing ( cross-country, Telemark, or ski jumping), which use skis with free-heel bindings. Whether for ...

and electrical engineer. Born missing her left arm below the elbow as well as both legs below the knees, she began skiing at the age of 4 and began competitive skiing at the age of 14. She is an eight-time gold medal winner at the Paralympics. In 1998, she was nicknamed "Pudding" by her teammates, due to her sweet tooth. Her life and achievements were celebrated in the

Toyota is a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. It was founded by Kiichiro Toyoda and incorporated on . Toyota is one of the largest automobile manufacturers in the world, producing about 10 ...

ad "Good Odds" that aired just after kickoff during

Super Bowl LII Super Bowl LII was an American football game played to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2017 season. The National Football Conference (NFC) champion Philadelphia Eagles defeated the American Football Conferen ...

in February 2018.

Career

Woolstencroft represented Canada at the 2002 Winter Paralympics in

Salt Lake City Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the Capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Utah, most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the county seat, seat of Salt Lake County, Utah, Sal ...

, winning two gold medals and a bronze. She represented her country again at the 2006 Games in

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital ...

, winning gold in the Giant Slalom and silver in the Super G. For her performance at the 2006 Games Woolstencroft was named Best Female at the Paralympic Sport Awards. She had contemplated retiring after the 2006 Games, but decided to stick around through the 2010 Games in Canada. In the

2010 Winter Paralympics ) , nations = 44 , athletes = 506 , events = 64 in 5 sports , opening = 12 March , closing = 21 March , opened_by = Governor General Michaëlle Jean , cauldron = Zach Beaumont , stadium = BC Place , winter_pr ...

Woolstencroft won 5 gold medals for Giant Slalom, Slalom, Super-G, Downhill Skiing, and Super Combined. She became the first Canadian to win 3 golds at the same Winter Paralympics,The Province
"Nation thrills at triple gold win"
Ian Austin, ''19 March 2010'' (accessed 19 March 2010) this total was later increased to 5 golds. With her 4th gold medal, she helped Canada set a record for most gold medals at any Winter Paralympic Games by winning the 7th medal. The previous mark was six, set at the 2002 Salt Lake City Paralympics.Canadian Paralympic Committee

CPC, ''19 March 2010'' (accessed 19 March 2010) With her 5th gold medal, she set the record for most gold medals won by any Winter Paralympian at a single Games, and she tied the record for gold medal haul of any Canadian Paralympian at a single Games, tying

Chantal Petitclerc Chantal Petitclerc (born December 15, 1969) is a Canadian wheelchair racer and a Senator from Quebec. Early life At the age of 13, Petitclerc lost the use of both legs in an accident when at a friend's farm, a heavy barn door fell on her, fra ...

(who did the feat twice) and Stephanie Dixon, both Summer Paralympians.Vancouver Sun
"Woolstencroft wins fifth gold medal"
CanWest News Service, ''21 March 2010'' (accessed 21 March 2010) Her five gold are also the record for any Canadian Winter Paralympian or Olympian.

Other work

Woolstencroft graduated with an

electrical engineering Electrical engineering is an engineering discipline concerned with the study, design, and application of equipment, devices, and systems which use electricity, electronics, and electromagnetism. It emerged as an identifiable occupation in the l ...

degree from the

University of Victoria The University of Victoria (UVic or Victoria) is a public research university located in the municipalities of Oak Bay and Saanich, British Columbia, Canada. The university traces its roots to Victoria College, the first post-secondary instit ...

. She now resides in North Vancouver.

Broadcasting career

In March 2018, she joined CBC's Broadcasting team for the

2018 Winter Paralympics ) , nations = 49 , athletes = 569 , events = 80 in 6 sports , opening = 9 March , closing = 18 March , opened_by = President Moon Jae-in , cauldron = Kim Eun-jung Seo Soon-seok , stadium = Pyeongchang Olympic ...

from March 9 to March 18.

Personal life

In November 2016, she and her husband Derek Uddenberg welcomed their first child Maxwell Davis Uddenberg.

Honours

Woolstencroft won the

Whang Youn Dai Achievement Award The Whang Youn Dai Achievement Award is named after South Korean Dr. Whang Youn Dai, who contracted polio at the age of three. She devoted her life to the development of paralympic sport in Korea and around the world. At the 1988 Paralympic Summe ...

in 2002. In 2007, during the

International Paralympic Committee The International Paralympic Committee (IPC; german: Internationales Paralympisches Komitee) is an international non-profit organisation and the global governing body for the Paralympic Movement. The IPC organizes the Paralympic Games and fun ...

's General Assembly in

Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 ...

, Woolstencroft was named the Paralympic Sport Awards 2007 Best Female Athlete."Canadian Paralympic Skier Lauren Woolstencroft Honored"
, ''First Tracks'' magazine, October 19, 2007 She was inducted into the

Terry Fox Hall of Fame The Canadian Disability Hall of Fame (formerly the Terry Fox Hall of Fame), recognizes "outstanding Canadians who have made extraordinary contributions to enriching the quality of life for people with physical disabilities". It is run by the Canadia ...

in 2007. In 2012 Woolstencroft was awarded the

Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal The Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal (french: Médaille du jubilé de diamant de la reine Elizabeth II) or The Queen's Diamond Jubilee Medal was a commemorative medal created in 2012 to mark the 60th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's ...

. In 2015, she was inducted into the Canadian Paralympic Hall of Fame of the

Canadian Paralympic Committee The Canadian Paralympic Committee (CPC; French: ''Comité paralympique canadien'') is the private, non-profit organization representing Canadian Paralympic athletes in the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) and the Parapan American Games. ...

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Woolstencroft, Lauren Living people Canadian female alpine skiers Canadian amputees Sportspeople with limb difference Alpine skiers at the 2002 Winter Paralympics Alpine skiers at the 2006 Winter Paralympics Alpine skiers at the 2010 Winter Paralympics Paralympic alpine skiers of Canada Paralympic gold medalists for Canada Paralympic silver medalists for Canada Paralympic bronze medalists for Canada Canadian Disability Hall of Fame 1981 births Medalists at the 2002 Winter Paralympics Medalists at the 2006 Winter Paralympics Medalists at the 2010 Winter Paralympics Canadian electrical engineers Paralympic Sport Awards — Best Female winners Paralympic medalists in alpine skiing