Born:
March 3, 1990

Mark Arendz

Mark started skiing at the age of five, and began competing eight years later at age 13. He had lost his left arm in a farming accident when he was seven and initially he competed in able bodied competition, using a ski prosthetic. After watching Biathlon at the 2002 Olympics, he was inspired to take up the sport, so joined the local Army Cadet Corp where he achieved great success on the Cadet Biathlon team.

By 2010, Mark was Canadian Champion at the Para-Nationals in both the 5 km classic and 10 km skate and in that same year he competed in two International Paralympic Committee (IPC) World Cups in Cross Country and Biathlon, and in the Paralympic Winter Games in Vancouver, BC.

From 2011 to 2014 he continued to compete in both Cross Country and Biathlon competitions (IPC World Cups and World Championships), winning a great many medals, particularly in biathlon. In both 2010/11 and 2011/12 he finished the season ranked second overall in the IPC World Cup standings, winning 3 gold, 2 silver and 1 bronze in 2010/11 and 2 gold, 2 silver and 2 bronze the following season.

In 2012/13, Mark won his first IPC Biathlon World Cup Crystal Globe, having earned four podium finishes in World Cup competition, as well as three World Championship medals, including one gold.

By the time of the Sochi Paralympic Games Mark was the reigning World Cup Biathlon Champion and World Champion in the 7.5 km Biathlon Sprint. At Sochi, he won a silver and a bronze in biathlon (7.5 km Standing and 12.5 km Standing respectively). His silver medal was Canada’s best-ever result in biathlon at a Paralympic Games.

At the 2017 Para-Nordic World Championships, Mark won five medals – two golds and one silver in Biathlon, and 2 bronzes in Cross Country.

• 

• 

At PyeongChang Paralympics 2018, Mark achieved the extraordinary feat of winning a medal in every race in which he competed: a silver and 2 bronze in Cross Country, and gold, silver and bronze in Standing Biathlon.

• 

• 

Vancouver Paralympic Games 2010
7th 3 km Biathlon Pursuit Standing
16th 12.5 km Biathlon Individual Standing
7th Cross Country Men’s Relay
9th Cross Country Classic Sprint Standing
12th Cross Country Classic Middle Distance Standing

Sochi Paralympic Games 2014
2nd Biathlon Sprint Standing
3rd Biathlon 12.5 km Standing
11th Biathlon Individual Standing
11th Cross Country Freestyle Middle Distance

Pyeongchang Paralympic Games 2018
1st Biathlon Individual Standing
2nd Biathlon Sprint Standing
3rd Biathlon Middle Distance Standing
2nd Cross Country Mixed Relay 4 x 2.5 km
3rd Cross Country Classic Sprint Standing
3rd Cross Country Classic Middle Distance Standing

Sources: International Paralympic Committee (PIC), Wikipedia