The US sled hockey team poses for a photo with President Barack Obama after returning home from the 2014 Olympics in Sochi, Russia. Two of the team's members will serve as honorary co-chairs for the Lockport Ice Arena fundraising campaign. (CONTRIBUTED PHOTO)

ENP STAFF REPORTS
news@eastniagarapost.com

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The Lockport Ice Arena and Sports Center, has named two honorary co-chairs to its capital campaign effort in the form of gold-medal-winning Olympians.

Adam Page

Adam Page and Paul Schaus recently returned home to Western New York from the Olympic winter games in Sochi, Russia. Page and Schaus, along with their team mates, each earned a gold medal in a fiercely fought sled hockey series. For their outstanding achievement, the entire team was recently recognized by President Barack Obama and the First Lady at a special White House ceremony.

Lockport Ice Arena board chair, John J. Ottaviano, is campaign chair for a $2 million capital drive to support construction of a $13 million not-for-profit ice arena and sports center in downtown Lockport.

“Adam and Paul are outstanding young men who have honored the entire nation, and now bring honor to Lockport and all of Western New York as they return home” said Ottaviano. “Through enormous dedication and hard work, they have each overcome significant physical challenges to become paralympic gold medalists. They are an inspiration to all of us as we continue work to bring a new ice arena to the Greater Lockport area.”

Page, 22, was born with spina bifida. Beginning at the age of 6, he spent many years perfecting the skills of a sled hockey competitor. He has been a member of the Buffalo Sabres sled hockey club team since 1999. In addition to his most recent accomplishment, Page brought home a gold medal in the 2010 Vancouver paralympic winter games, and is a four-time medalist in both the Paralympic Committee Ice Sledge Hockey World Championship and the IPC World Sledge Hockey Challenge. He plays forward position. He is a senior majoring in sports management at Medaille.

Paul Schaus

Schaus, 25, is a bilateral, above-the-knee amputee after being injured in 2009 by an improvised explosive device while serving in the US Marine Corps in Afghanistan. He helped Team USA win two of three games vs. Canada in January. He contributed to Team USA’s second-place finish at the December 2013 World Sledge Hockey Challenge in Toronto, Ontario. He has been a member of the Buffalo Sabres sled hockey team since fall 2011. He also plays forward position.

Chuck Bell, vice chairman of the Lockport Ice Arena board, said, “We welcome the participation of all ages and abilities at the new ice arena. In fact, Adam and Paul are working with our achitects to fine-tune specifications that are most suitable for persons with disabilities.”

The Lockport Ice Arena and Sports Center is currently under construction on Chestnut Street. A September opening is targeted.

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