Israel's first-ever Winter Paralympic athlete to compete in Beijing Games

JERUSALEM, March 3 (Xinhua) -- For the first time ever, Israel will participate in the Paralympic Winter Games, the Israeli Paralympic Committee said in a statement on Thursday.

The Israeli delegation to the 2022 Beijing Paralympics, which will begin on Friday, includes 20-year-old Alpine skier Sheina Vaspi and four staff members.

Vapsi lost her leg at age of three after a serious car accident.

She started skiing four years ago when she joined an Israeli voluntary organization which deals with the rehabilitation and empowerment of disabled army veterans, children and athletes in unique extreme sports.

She then decided to take skiing more seriously, and moved to train professionally in the United States.

In January this year, she was the first Israeli to participate in the Para Snow-Sports World Championships held in Lillehammer, Norway, finishing 13th in the Giant Slalom event.

The Israeli delegation to Beijing is headed by para-swimmer Inbal Pezaro, who has won nine Paralympics medals for Israel, and currently gives Vaspi mental and professional guidance in preparing for the Games.