BARRIE - Brad Bowden is the Sidney Crosby of sledge hockey, but few know of his outstanding talent on the ice.

In March, Bowden will be part of the Canadian men’s national sledge hockey team, competing at the 2010 Paralympic Winter Games to be held in Vancouver.

“I’m starting to feel the pressure a lot now that it (Paralympics) is getting closer,” said Bowden.

With a gold medal from the 2006 Paralympic Games already tucked away at home, the 26-year-old Barrie man is determined to add a second to his collection.

“The gold medal from Torino is nice and I cherish it. But I also have two rings from winning at the Olympics (2006) and at the world championships (2008). When I look down at those rings on my fingers, I think about what I don’t have and that’s a third ring. That’s what I really want,” said Bowden.

If recent games are any indication, he knows another podium finish won’t come easy.

“We’ve had a couple of games against the U.S. where we just haven’t been able to shake them. Our team has been going through a transition and we’ve been shown that if we don’t play well, we’re going to get beaten,” said Bowden.

Prior to their gold medal win in Italy in 2006 the Canadian men’s sledge hockey team was something of an unknown quantity.

After their win, their profile on the world scene increased significantly, and so did the number of victories.

The Olympic triumph put additional pressure on the team to perform at a high level, Bowden said.

“From 2006 to until last year just before the world championships, we basically hadn’t lost a tournament. Then we go into the Czech Republic last May and then lose to a team we’d beaten previous (U.S.) and finishing in third place was quite a shock,” said Bowden.

In action in mid-November at the 2009 World Sledge Hockey Challenge in Prince Edward Island, Bowden scored one of the four goals in a 4-0 win over the United States.

Norway and Japan have also become strong powers in sledge hockey in the past four years, making the job of defending a gold medal that much tougher.

Getting practice time is vital to Bowden, as he needs regular workouts to keep his arms and body in strong physical shape.

For that reason he feels fortunate to have been provided with weekly ice time in Oro-Medonte.

“I started checking around at the start of the season and couldn’t find any ice time anywhere in Barrie. I tried Innisfil as well with no luck,” said Bowden.

With the help of a Barrie businessman, Oro-Medonte Township Mayor Harry Hughes and township parks and recreation co-ordinator Shawn Binns were made aware of Bowden’s need for ice time.

“I wasn’t trying to demand ice and I didn’t think it was owed to me. I do know that when I need help to achieve something like a gold medal, if you don’t ask then you don’t get it. Sometimes you just need to find the right people,” said Bowden.

Hughes said he was happy the township could help out Bowden on the eve of one of the biggest hockey events of his life.

“We’re always pleased to be able to help out any athlete that’s trying to compete at a level like that, but in particular to be able to help someone who is involved in the Paralympic Games is just great,” said Hughes.

It’s awkward to ask for ice time, in a sport where he has been in the top three in scoring in the past three world championships, Bowden said.

“If I was Jerome Ignila or Sidney Crosby and had the millions they have, and they phoned up an arena and wanted an hour of ice, the rink manager would just love to have them at their arena,” said Bowden.

Bowden was stricken with a condition known as Sacaral Agenesis at birth. It is a rare congenital condition of spinal deformity affecting the sacrum.

As a child, Bowden was obsessed with hockey and he played wheelchair basketball before switching to sledge hockey 15 years ago.

Since then he has never looked back.

“I think the thing that makes me enjoy sledge hockey even more now is the fact I know it isn’t going to last forever. One day I am going to be 50 and look in the mirror and know I had a good time with the sport, had fun and knew I was a good player,” said Bowden.

While playing overseas, Bowden has seen different attitudes toward the physically challenged.

“Japan has been amazing and I have enjoyed myself every time I have been there. The way they look at the disabled is wonderful. They have comic books with wheelchair basketball athletes in them and they are admired. They have special adaptive sidewalks for blind people and ramps everywhere for wheelchairs. In Japan, they are always thinking about accessibility,” said Bowden.