Sheina Vaspi Shines at the Paralympic Games, But Doesn’t Compromise


The paraski team from Chile was also training in Winter Park, and one of the Chilean coach’s daughters really liked Vaspi’s skirt. One day the girl put on one of her own shoes on the slopes and presented Vaspi a drawing she had made herself, Vaspi’s fiery red hair rippling as she ran down the mountain in a skirt behind her.

Vaspi continued to observe the Sabbath; This meant that he had to skip two Saturday races during the World Para Snow Sports Championships in Lillehammer, Norway.

“I’m so proud of her,” said her father, Einav, in a recorded message from Israel after hearing that his daughter would not compete on Sabbath in China. “You’ve been training for two and a half years today and it’s really hard. But it’s on us. This is air and God. Paralympic Games and Shabbat together. The Sabbath is greater.”

At least Vaspi raced on Friday and finished her historic run wearing a slightly attention-grabbing skirt made of the same stylish material as her team. But for some racers obsessed with shaving hundreds of seconds of their time, it would be unthinkable to wear anything that could create wind resistance.

Vaspi admitted that she hasn’t been successful enough, at least not yet, to worry about the one-hundredth of a second she might lose in the skirt. He said it was more valuable to wear it and made a statement for all faiths.

“I believe it can show all religious people that they can enjoy both worlds,” he said. They can keep their faith and do the things that matter in their lives.”

Maybe one day these microseconds will matter. With a little over two years of competitive training, Vaspi’s prospects at these Games were modest. But given the incredible progress he has made in such a short time, one can only imagine what he will be able to do at the 2026 Winter Paralympics.

“We are not looking for gold medals here as we are so new to this,” said his coach, Olson. “But that’s where he can leave a mark in later games. He has a lot of desire and is willing to just let it rip. He’s power on one leg.”



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