Chris Daw of London, Ont., has done some pretty scary things in his life. The paraplegic has gone skydiving, mountain climbing and scuba diving.
None of those supplied the same adrenalin jolt Daw felt yesterday when he made two clutch shots in the final end of his wheelchair curling semi-final to steal one point for a 5-4 win over Norway that advanced Canada to the gold-medal game today at the Turin Paralympics.
"Not as scared as I was out there today," the skip said with a laugh when asked how the win compared with some of the more dangerous activities he's tried. "I love this sport.
"I don't want to let my teammates down. I have a lot of responsibility to them. My shots are the ones that go up on the scoreboard."
Daw and his team of Gerry Austgarden of Westbank, B.C., Gary Cormack of Surrey, B.C., and Sonja Gaudet of Vernon, B.C., will face two-time world champion Britain in the final. Britain defeated Sweden 7-3 in the other semi-final.
Also today, the Canadian sledge hockey team will play Norway for the gold medal.
Canada will surpass its goal of winning 10 medals at the Paralympics. Canadian athletes have won nine medals -- three gold, two bronze and four silver.
Russia leads the standings with 26 medals, including 11 gold. Ukraine is next with 21 medals.
In other sports yesterday, Kimberly Joines of Edmonton finished seventh in the women's sit-ski giant slalom. In the men's sit-ski event, Brad Lenna of Whistler, B.C., was 17th and Jeffery Penner of Kitchener, Ont., 33rd.
The Canada-Norway curling match was tied 4-4 in the sixth and final end. Daw, who was born without muscles in his legs, first executed a pinpoint raise that tapped his own rock into the four-foot ring to count as shot. The 36-year-old threw a perfect guard with his second stone.
Once considered the fastest wheelchair athlete in the world, Daw has competed in four Summer Paralympics in athletics, basketball and rugby. He will finally win his first Paralympic medal today.