After years of anticipation and delays, skier Janna Novatski is in Italy preparing to fulfill a dream.
Novatski, 35, from South Abington Twp., is representing Team USA at the 2025 Special Olympics World Winter Games, now underway in Turin. It's the chance of a lifetime, and one which she missed out on twice before due to world events.
"They canceled Russia. They canceled Sweden. They only had so many openings for Italy, and luckily, they had a slot for her,” said her mother, Vicky Novatski.
Alpine skiers are scheduled to compete from Tuesday, March 11, to Saturday, March 15, and Janna Novatski is one of just 30 athletes on the U.S. alpine skiing team.
“It’s great because she's been working,” father Allen Novatski said.
That work began early, after the Novatskis adopted Janna from Russia.
“When we were younger, we were skiers,” Allen Novatski said. “We used to travel all over skiing, and when we adopted Janna, she was 5 years old, and she went skiing with us.”
Outside of skiing, she has competed in various other sports throughout her athletic career, including running, soccer, equestrian sports, golf, and most recently, bowling.
“She's pretty busy,” Allen Novatski said.
Novatski has been a multi-sport Special Olympics athlete for roughly 15 years, but various external obstacles prevented her from competing in the games.
“When COVID hit, we lost our ski team up in this area,” Allen Novatski said. “We just kept taking her up the mountain and letting her take lessons.”
Her hard work and perseverance earned her a spot in the 2021 Special Olympics World Winter Games. But the competition was postponed due because of the pandemic and lack of funds. They were rescheduled for 2023 in Kazan, Russia, but were ultimately cancelled following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Finally, last year, after earning gold medals in three events in Pennsylvania skiing competitions, Janna Novatski was selected to compete on the world stage once again at this week's games in Turin.
The games began on Saturday, March 8, and will conclude Saturday, March 15.
Team USA consists of 101 Special Olympics athletes and Unified partners, 32 coaches and 27 support staff. The athletes will compete in eight sports: alpine skiing, cross country skiing, dancesport, figure skating, floorball, snowboarding, snowshoeing and short track speed skating.
And Janna Novatski is among them.
“We’re really proud of her,” Vicky Novatski said.