Palmer sit-skier can boast a full set of Paralympic medals after capturing the bronze medal in the super-G in Cortina, Italy.
His achievement followed by his announcement of retirement from the sport garnered him flag-bearing honors at the closing ceremony. It also earned him our Alaska Athlete of the Week accolades.
Kurka, 34, already had gold and silver from the 2018 Pyeongchang Paralympics.
He got the bronze by swiftly and safely navigating the 1,850-meter course in 1 minute, 13.95 seconds.
The medal in Kurka’s final Paralympics comes eight years after his dazzling display in Pyeonchang and four years after a painful blow in Beijing, where finished 4th after suffering a broken arm.
- Amelio Ambrosio – The Dimond boys basketball player scored 20 points and threw down an array of dunks in a 63-55 win over No. 1 Service in the title game of the Cook Inlet Conference Championships.
- Quincy Donley and Luke Jager – The Anchorage-based skiers were crowned men’s and women’s champions of the 50-kilometer Tour of Anchorage cross-country ski race.
- Adarra Hagelund – The Soldotna athlete won her second national title in the high jump by clearing 5 feet, 10 inches on her third attempt to cap an undefeated season at the NAIA Indoor Track & Field Championships, while moving into a tie for ninth all-time in NAIA indoor history.
- Jack Leveque – The Anchorage cross-country skier shined at the World Junior Championships. Racing against the world’s best young skiers — most of them 2-4 years older than him — Leveque grabbed 10th place in Friday’s 10-kilometer classic in Lillehammer, Norway.
- Dominique Nicdao – The Service boys basketball player hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer to give the Cougars a 59-56 semifinal win over South in the semifinals of the CIC Championships that clinched a berth in the Class 4A state tournament.
- Coen Niclai – The Arizona State catcher from Anchorage hit a home run and drove in five runs in a 29-4 rout of Loyola Marymount in NCAA Division I baseball.
- Abriella Werner – The sophomore at St Cloud State University is returning to NCAA Div 2 Diving Championships after competing in nationals last year as a freshman. She recently placed fourth in her conference meet in 1-meter-dive and sixth in the 3-meter dive.
The Alaska Athlete of the Week is selected by a panel each Monday. If you have an athlete of the week recommendation you can email it to info@alaskasportshall.org.
