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Sharon Firth (born 31 December 1953 in Aklavik, Northwest Territories) is a Canadian former cross-country skier who competed in the Winter Olympics in 1972, 1976, 1980 and 1984.

She is the twin sister of fellow ski team member Shirley Firth. They became the first indigenous women to be inducted into Canada's Sports Hall of Fame in 2015. Sharon received a National Aboriginal Achievement Award in the sports category in 2005.

Questions:

How did her culture and life as an Aboriginal, effect her as an athlete?

Does she have any other recognition's, or prestigious awards?

What was her life like, before compared to after the Olympics?

Is there recent information, on her life today?

3 New sources:

1. Coming from a family of 14 who traveled and survived on only foot and hand, Sharon Firth learned at a very young age the importance of hard work. Her parents taught her the true meaning of appreciation for food and outdoors, and claims that these memories, which are some of the best of her life, shaped her into the women she is today.

Living a traditional lifestyle, Sharon could not imagine her life otherwise. With no TV, internet, or video-games, it really forces a young child to use their imagination. For Sharon, she dreamed what was beyond the river, and what was beyond the territory she knew so well. To strive in such a culture, it was key to fully indulge in every aspect of it. This translates to her life as an athlete. In order to make it, and strive as an Olympic athlete, it took complete indulgence and dedication. She had to work arguably even harder than other athletes, to overcome a variety of barriers in order to get her well deserving recognition in the Hall of Fame.

2. Sharon Firth showed her dedication to skiing through a career of an outstanding level of excellence.

For an astonishing 17 years, Sharon Firth and her sister were active on the World Cup circuit. "Between them, they won 79 medals at a variety of racing distances at the national championships and competed in four winter Olympic Games, in 1972 at Sapporo, Japan, in 1976 at Innsbruck, Austria, in 1980 at Lake Placid, New York, USA< and in 1984 at Sarajevo, Yugoslavia". With such achievements, the sisters gained incredible recognition. They used this influence to bring skiing to other First Nations and Inuit people of Canada.

3. The innate drive to see the world was what pushed Sharon to be the best athlete, scholar, and person she could be. Training through rigid temperatures of the winter, and unforgiving mosquitoes in the summer, one really had to love what they were doing. Final words from her mother was the final factor of deciding to leave her well known homeland. Explaining that home will always be there, but opportunities are rare so you have to take them when the appear.

Being away from home was indeed challenging. Although faced with racism, Sharon explain that pride was something no one could take away from her. “I was born Aboriginal and I love it,” she said. “I wouldn’t want to be anyone else. When you have your culture, your strong foundation which comes from your parents, nobody can take that away from you. When you are grounded and rooted, you are unmovable". Sharon also upheld a unique yet simple strategy through these years of her life. Set small goals, and work towards larger ones. Today, looking back on her Olympic memories, Sharon thanks her community for the continuous support. She feels that today, community support is lacking, and she is working towards implementing its importance.