‘Air baths’ and adrenaline rushes: Tyler Turner’s Paralympic preparation

It’s a clear day in Canada’s Comox Valley and the sky is calling Tyler Turner.

The 36-year-old Paralympic snowboard champion is driving out to an aerodrome, parachute in the back of his car, gearing up for what he dubs an “air bath”.

“For me, jumping out of aeroplanes, it's calming. It's fun, it's enjoyable, it's relaxing,” he told the IPC.

Such thrill seeking is all in a day’s work for Turner, who is a professional parachuting instructor. (He did three sky dives, and a base jump a day earlier.)

“You really need to love it, to continue to put yourself through this every day,” he said.

Flying to the podium

Turner won Canada's first gold in Para snowboard at the Beijing 2022 Paralympic Winter Games. Storming to victory in the men’s SB-LL1 snowboard cross, he also picked up a bronze in the men’s SB-LL1 banked slalom.

For Turner, the road to Paralympic glory was tumultuous.  After losing both legs below the knee following a freak parachuting crash in 2017, he faced a gruelling rehabilitation process and battled an addiction to pain medication.

Giving up skydiving, one of his greatest passions, was never on the cards. It gave him the motivation to push through dark days.

“If you got in a car accident, would you stop driving?” he said in an Instagram clip charting his recovery.

It was therefore fitting that when he returned to Canada post-games, he celebrated his Paralympic success by jumping out of a plane.

Eye on the prize

As he seeks to defend his title at the Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games, Turner said a smorgasbord of extreme sports will help him stay sharp over summer.

“High adrenaline sports that require that split-second decision making, they require you to be on your toes, always ready for anything, dealing with high pressure, high anxiety. It's the exact thing that's happening when you're in a start gate, when you're racing, when the pressure's on,” he said. “I live in that environment every single day.”

While many northern hemisphere-based winter Para athletes chase the snow in the southern hemisphere in the off-season, Turner says having a break from snow gives him a good reset.

“I'm actually looking forward to some time away from snow,” he said. “I feel like it gets me so reinvigorated and re-energised for the next season... I'm showing up (in autumn on the slopes) with a lot more energy, a lot more joy and motivation.”

Turner has some of the world’s best mountain bike trails on his doorstep in Cumberland, Vancouver Island, and the sport provides excellent cross-training, he said.

“It's great cardio and it just pushes you,” he said.

Chasing waves is another favourite pursuit.

“If I need the cup filled up a little bit, I'll go surfing,” he said. “(It) just puts a smile on my face,” he said.

Building momentum

Turner bagged his third straight world title on home turf in Big White Canada, and the coveted Crystal Globe trophy at Steamboat Springs, Colorado, in the USA, earlier this year.

But despite his recent successes, Turner characterised it as a tough season of racing where he had to iron out some niggles.

He had missed a few podiums and struggled at times with his riding, equipment and prosthetics.

“It was the most adversity I've faced yet in my Para snowboard career,” he said. “(But now) the momentum is in the right place.”

Lessons from reality TV

In 2023, Turner and his then-girlfriend, now-wife, Kayleen competed in the ninth season of Amazing Race Canada, finishing runners-up.

The show is one of Canada’s most popular television programmes and Turner is frequently recognised in the streets.

He said it was heartwarming chatting to fans, particularly people from the amputee community.

“There's been some incredible interactions, even just a couple of weeks ago in an airport, running into a lady who recognised me. We started having a conversation, and her son was getting his first prosthetic,” he said, adding he was glad to be able to pass on tips and advice that he had learnt from his journey.

Galivanting to far-flung places all over Canada for filming had provided some valuable lessons for his racing, Turner said. “We learnt that a smooth, methodical approach was actually more successful for us,” he said.

“Our whole saying in the TV show is: ‘Slow, smooth and smooth is fast.’ And so I'm a little bit of a rammy guy and maybe I can take that into my racing, just to slow it down and be even smoother. That could lead to more success.”
 

Secure your tickets for the Milano Cortina 2026 Paralympic Winter Games  

Milano Cortina 2026, which takes place from 6-15 March 2026, is set to be the most beautiful Paralympic Winter Games yet. Ticket prices start at EUR 10 for children under 14, with approximately 89 per cent of the tickets available for EUR 35 or less.

For more information, please visit tickets.milanocortina2026.org