Page 40 - Tom Steyer Issue

40 ABILITY
The Greatest Story Never Told ... Yet
Filmmakers Shed Light on 2002 Sled Hockey Quest for Paralympic Gold
It was fall 2001. The United States national sled hockey team was finishing one of their first training camp weekends, which were grueling four-day marathons on the ice as the team paraded around to dif- ferent cities once a month in preparation for the Paralympic Games.
The squad was closing down a scrimmage and all that head coach Rick Middleton could see was a bunch of his guys skating all over the ice.
“After the first couple of camps, we’re out there running some scrimmages and they were all over the place and out of position. I couldn’t tell who was on what team and who was playing forward or who was playing defender,” Middleton recalled. So he turned to his friend and assistant coach Tom Moulton. “I don’t think we have enough time.”
In less than six months, the U.S. squad was going to be the host team for the 2002 Paralympic Games in Salt Lake City. The team needed some stability.
The former coach had just resigned. The team had won just one international game ever. And despite all that, the team was guaranteed a spot in the Games as the host.