Athletes To Watch In Italy: Anna-Lena Forster
As the Paralympic Winter Games continue in Italy, Anna-Lena Forster has already made her mark on the competition. On day two of the Games, the German sit-skier delivered a standout performance to win gold in the women’s sitting giant slalom, securing Germany’s first gold medal of these Paralympics.
Forster has long been one of the leading athletes in para alpine skiing. Born in Radolfzell in southern Germany, she sustained a spinal cord injury as a child and later discovered sit-skiing through rehabilitation. Competing in a mono-ski, where the athlete sits in a bucket seat mounted on a single ski and uses outriggers for balance and steering, requires exceptional upper-body strength, coordination, and precision - skills that Forster has honed throughout her career.
Her rise in the sport began early. At the 2014 Winter Paralympics, she announced herself on the international stage with two silver medals. In the years that followed she became a consistent presence on the World Cup podium and one of the most technically accomplished racers in the sitting category.
Forster reached the peak of her career so far at the 2022 Winter Paralympics, where she won two gold medals and additional podium finishes, cementing her status as one of the sport’s dominant figures. Her victory in Italy continues that success and once again shows why she remains a central figure in Germany’s Paralympic team.
Beyond the results, Forster represents the remarkable combination of athletic performance and adaptive technology that defines sit-ski racing. The sport is a powerful example of how engineering, training, and determination come together to enable athletes with a range of disabilities to compete at the highest level of alpine skiing.
With a Paralympic gold medal already secured in Italy, Anna-Lena Forster has once again shown why she is one of the athletes to watch in these Games - and why para alpine skiing remains one of the most thrilling events of the Winter Paralympics.
For those following adaptive sport, rehabilitation, and high-performance winter racing, her runs are always worth watching.
Follow Anna-Lena Forster on Instagram.
Post by Bjoern Eser. Bjoern is the founder of and shaker and maker behind The Active Amputee.
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