Setting ‘Smaller, More Achievable Goals’ Led Montana Teen Jack Berry to Achieve One Big Goal: Making the U.S. Paralympics Team

Jack Berry had just finished eating dinner in Poland when his coach pulled him aside to have a quick chat one night in late January. 

Nick Michaud, who’s a coach with U.S. Paralympics Nordic Skiing, informed Berry that the Team USA roster for the Paralympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026 was about to be announced. Michaud wanted to give Berry the good news before it became official. 

The 18-year-old from Missoula, Montana, had qualified for his first Winter Paralympics — only a few years after he started cross-country skiing while wearing a prosthetic leg. Instead of immediately calling his parents to share the news, Berry wanted to take a moment to let it sink in. 

“It’s really special because it’s kind of a culmination of this big dream I’ve had since I really got sick,” said Berry, who had his right knee removed after he was diagnosed with a rare type of bone cancer at age 10. “And so, to make the team, it was always what I thought of as being the pinnacle of anything that I could do. And so now that I’m here, it’s really special, and I feel like I’ve honored my younger self.” 

Even though Berry has enjoyed a fast rise in the sport, he admitted he struggled with his confidence when he first started competing as a Para standing skier. He needed to change his way of thinking and get into “a good head space” if he wanted to reach his potential, and it took a lot of work and soul searching to do that. 

Berry said he now has a lot more confidence in himself and his ability to get on snow and put together good race results. As a member of the U.S. Paralympics Nordic Skiing development team, he has finished in the top 10 at 12 world cup events over the past two seasons. 

“My younger self would be extremely proud, and I think he would be relieved,” Berry said of qualifying for Milano Cortina. “There has never been a doubt in my mind that I’d get here at some point in time, and it was just always a goal of mine. It was just something that I was going to make happen, and I did. And I think he’d be stoked for me.” 

Berry recently graduated from high school and is taking a gap year before he starts taking classes as a student at Boston College. In the meantime, his entire family and several of his friends are expected to be in Italy to watch him race at the Winter Paralympics. 

Berry plans to compete in three events at the Val di Fiemme venue where Nordic skiing events are being held. He’s set to take part in the sprint, the distance race and a relay race as a member of one of the U.S. teams. 

A year ago, as a high school senior, Berry was sitting in a history class when he checked his email and learned from U.S. Paralympics Nordic Skiing that he had qualified to compete at a world cup in Val Di Fiemme. The experience was a big moment in his development as a skier. 

Berry said his struggles with his confidence didn’t improve simply by competing in more races. He remembers one season in particular when he raced more than he ever had before, and he was still doubting himself. 

“It kind of became worse throughout the season because nothing was changing for me, so I’d go to race after race and I’d still have this same mindset, and my performance was not good because of that,” Berry said. “And it really negatively impacted me.” 

Berry said he spoke with sports psychologists, therapists and his friends to get to the root of the problem and try to shift his mindset. Instead of judging his entire race, he started looking for individual aspects of his race that were encouraging, such as when he would have enough energy to climb an uphill section of the course. 

“If I had to pick one single thing that really changed how I thought about racing, it would be goal setting, because before you set goals for yourself, smaller, more achievable goals, racing can feel really daunting because you’re comparing yourself to the best in the world,” Berry said. 

“If you’re not hitting some benchmark that you’ve made up in your mind, then that creates a negative race. And so, I think setting smaller, more achievable goals … those are significantly more achievable and they’re real. When you accomplish them, you are able to have a feeling of success.” 

Berry said he’d love to win a gold medal at Milano Cortina, but he admitted that he’s still new to Para Nordic skiing and could still be a few years away from being a top contender at the Winter Paralympics. For now, he’d rather just appreciate the next few weeks in Italy and the experience of competing on the world’s largest stage. 

“The Paralympics are a really unique experience, and I think, racing aside, that I’m just going to try my hardest to absorb all that I can and to learn as much as possible,” Berry said. “I’m really looking forward to it.” 

As Berry was battling cancer, he inspired people in Missoula who became known as “Jack’s Army.” They planted hundreds of signs in their front yards to show their support for him and his family as he went through multiple rounds of chemotherapy. 

Berry knows his hometown is rooting him as he prepares to make his Paralympic debut. 

“It is a big deal for Missoula. I’m trying to let myself see that as well, but I think a lot of people are really happy about where I’ve gone,” Berry said. “And I hope they’re able to see their role in it as well because really I wouldn’t be here without all of the support and the incredible community that we have in Missoula.” 

Alex Abrams has written about Olympic and Paralympic sports for more than 15 years, including as a reporter for major newspapers in Florida, Arkansas and Oklahoma. He is a freelance contributor to USParaNordic.org on behalf of Red Line Editorial, Inc.