Drug Addiction Stories & Info

Stephen Gregory Podborski was born in 1957, and his main claim to fame was to have been a member of the Crazy Canucks – a group of downhill skiing enthusiasts, who achieved World Cup and Olympic success, with their feats of endurance, and skill, in the 1980′s.

Steve Podborski and Ken Read, Dave Irwin, Dave Hunter and others were some of the most daring, and skilled alpine skiiers, that have gone onto the Canadian record book, and achieved international fame.

Steve Podborski didn’t do drugs, and as such is a role model that all young Canadians can look up to and follow – knowing that everything that Steve Podborski did was won on his own merits.

Steve started skiing when he was only two and a half years old, joined the Canadian ski team at 16, and at the age of 17, performed in World Cup Ski events.

In 1982, Podborski rose to fame by becoming the first North American to win the World Cup downhill season title – winning a total of eight races, that took the power and the glory away from the Europeans.

One of the races in which Podborski was successful was the Hahnenkamm, in Kitzbuhel, Austria. Hahnenkamm means rooster’s comb in German and people winning,  after competing on the “Streif”, can certainly strut with pride – it is considered to be, with its “fall away turns, and flat gliding sections, the most demanding course in the downhill skiing World Cup events.

Fritz Strobl of Austria holds the record for skiing the Hahnenkamm, in 1997 – covering the 3.3k of the course at an average speed of 106.9 km/h, descending at a rate of 7.7meters per second.

Ken Read, a companion of Podborski, and one of the Crazy Canucks was the first non- European to win a ski race at Kitzbuhel, in 1980, as part of the World Cup events.

The Crazy Canucks hit a high spot – winning World Cup races at Kitzbuhel, in the years 1980 to 1983.

Steve Podborski’s name stands out among European winners, winning the downhill Hahnenkamm in 1981, and 1982.

For people looking for a challenge, there is a race run on the Streif that is called the StreifVertical – Up race.

There are no rules and many classes of entry – the aim of everyone who enters is to make their way, with ice picks, snowshoes, whatever, to the top of the slope – to the “start booth” of the races.

The fastest and second fastest men, and the quickest woman in this race have all used ordinary touring skis – and been in the group designated “over 40′s. 

Many older people overlook the possibilities of organized sport as a means to maintain fitness and health.

Today Steve Podborski is still involved with sport, and the coaching of young people.

He has recently been nominated to be the Chef de Mission for the Canadian Team, for the proposed 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.

This follows on from Steve having been the Assistant Chef de Mission to Natalie Lambert, at the Winter Games, in Vancouver, BC in 2010.

Steve himself is a bronze medal Olympian, winning the bronze for downhill racing at the 1980 Lake Placid Olympics, a medal that he won at the start of his skiing career. In the hey day of the Crazy Canucks, all four young Canadian skiiers captured the public imagination with their bravado, skill and daring.

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Steve Podborski is today a recognized public speaker – that provides a brief bio of this famous Canadian skier, by way of an introduction to the man, and character – a profile of someone who is first a family man – and someone who unstintingly, gives of himself to the community.

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One of Steve’s main interests, among many, is his involvement with the Right To Play organization, that began in Toronto, Canada, and is now established world-wide.

Steve is Athlete Ambassador for Right to Play. The group promotes sport and exercise to youth, as a means to fitness, social development and to gain personal achievement.

In January 2012, Right to Play joined forces with Little League – from Canada, and Uganda to create the Canada – Uganda baseball challenge – giving 11-13 year old Uganda children the opportunity to play baseball and make history – last year Little League baseball Uganda gained the right to compete in world series Little League baseball – the first African team in history.

It is thanks to people like Steve Podborski that many young people today are supported in their quest to find adventure and challenge that is of a positive nature, that enhances their personal fitness, that fosters social skills and develops better international relationships, at a grass roots level.

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Steve Podborski does not do drugs, has never used drugs, nor performance enhancers.

Steve created a storm when in 1983, he and Ken Read, as Olympic skiiers, gave public support to the anti- tobacco stance of the Canadian Ski Association’s Medical Committee, and refused to accept awards given them in the Macdonald’s Export “A” Cup, due to tobacco advertising and sponsorship issues.

Young people today can learn good values, get mentoring and support from trusted adults who understand the benefits of exercise, and sport.

You can become more outgoing, more confident and relaxed, make new and positive friendships by getting into some kind of organized sport.

Young people don’t have time for, or any interest in drugs, when they are getting a natural high, from playing a sport that they love.

Steve Podborski started skiing at the age of two and a half – and won a bronze Olympic medal.

No matter what you achieve, as your personal best, participation in exercise and sport – gets you fit and healthy.

Getting fit and healthy is part of drug prevention, and part of the journey of recovery from drug abuse and addiction.

Come Together and Beat Addiction

Send us your thoughts on addiction, post ideas, ways to help, and inspirational stories.  Millions of people are battling addiction every day, and for so many there is no one to talk to, no one to seek help from.  I am inviting the entire world to start talking about addiction right now, what ever your thoughts are, send it to us.  Share it on line here, there are people who will listen and provide advice, or just a kind ear. 

Let’s start making a change now, let us start inspiring those addicted to drugs and alcohol to get help, look for advice, or just talk about it.  If we continue to ignore the problem it will only get bigger.  It is all around, us impacting all walks of life, young and old.  I am challenging you to voice your thoughts, stories, advice, anything you can think of that will get people talking about.   

 I will start things off; here is an inspirational success story:

“The Narconon program has freed me from the shackles of my addiction; it has given me the strength to face my past demons that kept me locked in a hopeless losing battle with drugs.  It has brought me back from a helpless soul that was only just surviving, to a person who is not only surviving, but is living life and loving it.  That was an impossible task before this program how could I have loved life if I didn’t even love myself….  And that is the biggest gift that the program has given me!”

 ”I love what I see in the mirror now.  I have nothing to hide from the people in my life and it is amazing how easy life really is when you are not living a double life and by facing the things in my life and changing all aspects of my life. I have been able to talk about things in my past freely with the people who love me, all because I have forgiven myself while doing all the steps on the program, and I am truly in present time,  something that didn’t make sense to me till after I got home and realized how my addiction was really controlling me and every action I made…But no more   and never again…. ”

 ”Thank you Narconon, for finding me and bringing me back to life!!!!!!!!”

Two stories, not about recovery from drug addiction, it’s true, but nevertheless compelling tales about two young men who overcame adversity, found hope beyond despair, who each have something important to say to young people today.

Youth today faces challenge.  There is the challenge of drugs, challenge to the family unit as the cornerstone of happy communities. It can be a challenge to find appropriate employment, to maintain a positive sense of self worth and value in society today.

Many young people, who feel the pressure, might resort to negative behavior, rebellion, anger and drug use, not because they are bad people, but because everyone has a need to find identity, friendship and bonding somewhere within the community.

Young people are at risk of being misunderstood, when they engage in anti social behavior. There is always a better way to speak out, have a voice and make our needs known than by acting out in a destructive, self harming way, that ultimately causes distress to all,  and fails to heal our wounds.

Using the path of substance abuse to overcome despair does not provide the social inclusion and acceptance that we crave.

 The first story is about Nick Vujicic, born without arms or legs in the December of 1982. There was no reason, no particular cause as to why of all his siblings, Nick was born with the rare condition of Tetra-amelia Syndrome. His life could easily have become an endless night of helplessness, without hope of being able to live anything like a “normal” life.

Nick has his mother and father to thank for their grim determination, that whatever happened in Nick’s life – they would do their best to treat him as normal, and encourage others to do the same. Nick had no special favors, no demeaning pity – he went to an ordinary government school, studied the usual lessons, and managed to bear and overcome more than a fair share of teasing and bullying.

Life was not always kind, and by an early age Nick had faced up to the demons of loneliness and depression, had considered suicide.

However, Nick went on to graduate from Griffiths University in Accounting and Financial Planning, and wrote many inspirational books such as Life Without Limits. Nick has sporting achievements to his credit, has moved to live in California, where he runs the motivational charity, for the help of others, known as Life Without Limbs.

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Nick is a sought after motivational, public speaker in Canada, most recently appearing in Edmonton in January 2012, at the Shaw Conference Center.

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After a long relationship, and engagement to Kanae – Nick and Kanae were married in February 2012.

Another young man, who says that charity is and will always be part of his life, is Pacharo Mzembe.

Pacharo Mzembe was born in Zimbabwe and at the age of five became with his family, a political refugee, eventually settling in Australia. Although Pach has successfully graduated from an Australian High School, and since become a famous TV personality – starring as “Nigger” in the Melbourne gangsta TV series “Underbelly”, he is all too aware of the poverty, the lack of educational opportunties back in his homeland. 

Pach sees himself as having been favored with opportunities, denied to young people who live in Third World poverty.

What drives Pach to forsake his movie career – and run across Australia – hopefully covering just over 4,000k in around 70 days - participating in the Run of Awareness, is what he sees as an urgent need for all young people to be given a good education.

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As part of the run, Pach intends to visit at least one hundred schools and to speak to adults and children on behalf of the two charities – Room to Read, and Youth Off the Streets. He hopes to finish his run on the steps of the Sydney Opera House, and deliver a speech to children about the importance of education.

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Yet Pach, the only non-white in acting school, was told to expect limited acting opportunities for African people. However, Pach gained many roles due to his acting ability, and has also returned to Zimbabwe.

Pach says that aside from acting, he does everything that he can to help his father to build the school he has half -constructed in Malawi, in memory of his mother.

Two young men, two very different people, at first glance, but think again.

The biggest issues that we have to face in life concern relationship, belonging, and loss. At a deep level, all young people can relate to the themes presented of isolation, loss and separation.

Many young people have a need to create, with very little support, a life structure, and a purpose, and to find a way to come to terms with loss and grief.

Young people can use what they learn in the process to go on to become better, stronger more connected people.

Those who have chosen the road to substance abuse and addiction might see in these stories the light of hope – but not know where to go, to make a new start in their life.

Young people in Canada, who are into substance abuse and drug addiction, who want to build a better life can call a Narconon helpline – and discover what comprehensive alcohol and drug addiction recovery programs can do for you.

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Start with a comprehensive alcohol and drug addiction recovery program today – and move into a new tomorrow.