Sawt Falasteen - Dutch snowboarding couple going for gold at Paralympics

Vos and Bunschoten were both silver medallists in the snowboard cross event at the 2018 PyeongChang games -- where Bunschoten also bagged a bronze in the banked slalom.

Hot contenders for podium finishes once more, the pair was chosen to carry the Dutch flag at the Paralympics opening ceremony Friday.

At Sunday's snowboard cross qualifying event, Bunschoten was ranked third heading into the finals and Vos was eighth on the leader board -- after taking a tumble on his first run but registering a better time on his second.

Vos said the snow conditions on the course could be unforgiving.

"The snow is still really hard. In the night it's really cold, and then it warms up but the snow doesn't warm up, so it's still really hard... one little thing and you're gone," he told AFP.

Now 23, Vos rode into the history books as a teen when he became the first-ever athlete to compete in a para-snowboarding event at the 2014 Sochi games.

- Not love at first sight -

Bunschoten, 26, and Vos have been a couple for more than eight years.

"It wasn't love at first sight -- he was really annoying," Bunschoten said, an assertion Vos separately conceded to with a laugh.

But as they grew up, romance blossomed, and these days they train together at the gym and on the slopes.

They also learn a lot from each other's different boarding styles.

"We are totally the opposite. He loves to jump and fly, and I love the small technical features," Bunschoten said.

The four-time world champion said it's sometimes tough watching each other compete.

"I didn't see his fall, but I saw his start and it was amazing," Bunschoten said.

"It's pretty nerve-wracking... it's pretty intense sometimes," added Vos, who also has four world championship titles.

The coronavirus pandemic has prevented athletes' family members from travelling to China to cheer them on, giving the couple's relationship an added layer of resonance.

"We are really lucky to have each other here -- having your soulmate here is amazing," Bunschoten said

"It's really cool that we can do this together. We can push each other and be there for each other when something is wrong," said Vos.

In 2021, the pair had only two races due to event cancellations from the pandemic, but this year will be much busier, they expect.

Bunschoten and fellow Dutch Paralympic snowboarder Renske van Beek are encouraging other young women to get involved in para-snowboarding, running training camps called Adaptive Board Chicks.

And Vos has a foundation that helps young people with disabilities get involved in sport and exercise.

Outside of snowboarding, Bunschoten is a keen horse rider while Vos has acquired his pilot's licence and enjoys flying private planes.

Born with fibula aplasia, Bunschoten's left leg grew shorter than her right -- and at 16, she made the agonising decision to have her foot amputated.

Her brother encouraged her to try snowboarding as a teenager.

Doctors didn't expect Vos to ever walk again after he hurt his right leg at age five in an accident with a digging machine, which resulted in it becoming paralysed.

On a family skiing holiday two years after the incident, Vos's father thought he might be able to stand on a snowboard, so he tied a rope around his waist and off they went.

The Winter Paralympic snowboard cross finals are on Monday and the banked slalom finals take place next Saturday.

C.Hamad--SF-PST