Retiring Paralympian Brian McKeever says it's time for teammates 'to have the spotlight'

It's been nearly a week since cross-country skier Brian McKeever's final individual Paralympic race, but the post-retirement emotions are just starting to set in for the Canmore, Alta., native.

"I'm just starting to look back at what we were able to do and … kind of thinking about, at this point, 20 years of career and reflecting back on that," he told The Current's guest host Mark Kelley.

McKeever has no shortage of achievements to reflect on. He swept his three individual events in the Beijing 2022 Paralympics for the fourth Games in a row, winning gold in the 20 kilometre classical, the 1.5 kilometre sprint and the 12.5 kilometre freestyle.

Karen O'Neill, the CEO of the Canadian Paralympic Committee, said McKeever's races in Beijing were "some of the best races I've ever seen him race."

WATCH: McKeever races to gold in final solo Paralympic race

McKeever, who began losing his vision to Stargardt's disease when he was 19 years old, competed in the least severe classification of the visually impaired category. 

Since debuting at the 2002 Winter Paralympics, he's built of a list of accolades including a career total of 16 gold medals and 20 podium finishes.

They're both records for Paralympic cross-country skiers — not that he's counting.

"I've never done this for money, I've never done it for medals, I've never done it for recognition," he said. "I've done it because I wanted to, and I do really love this sport."

Despite being a reigning gold medallist, McKeever believes it's the right time to step away and give upcoming athletes a chance to taste success.

"[My teammates are] training so hard," he said. "It's their time to have the spotlight and not have to live under a shadow of an old man."

Brotherly love

One of the first people to celebrate with McKeever after his final individual race was his brother, Robin.

"My brother came around the corner and I just started crying because that was it," he said. "We'd been through so much for 20 years, and it was the realization at that point that this was the last race I was competing at the Games."

Robin, who is six years older than Brian, who taught Brian how to skate. He also competed at the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano.

"As the younger brother, I always wanted to follow in his footsteps; and I was probably a pain in the butt for him, but I followed him around quite a bit," Brian said.

Robin served as Brian's sighted guide from 2001 to 2010. Together, they shared gold medals in the 2002, 2006 and 2010 Winter Olympics, as well as two silver medals and a bronze.

An injury following the 2010 Winter Games forced Robin to shift into a coaching role. But Brian said he had taken Robin's lessons to heart and was ready to work with other experts in the field.

"You always need good representation, good mentorship, and he was there … in the family," Brian said. "I didn't need a hero from Europe, I had one there so close [to me]."

Paralympics as more than a sideshow

When McKeever debuted in 2002, the Olympics were seen as the "big show" in Canada, and the Paralympics were "a little sideshow," he said.

But he credits the 2010 Vancouver Olympics for taking a step forward in bridging the gap, by marketing both events equally.

"That raised the profile for Paralympics in Canada," he said. "But, it's still not at the same visibility level."

That gap is most evident in the discrepancy between the monetary rewards for Canadian medallists.

The Canadian Olympic Committee Athlete Excellence Fund, which is funded through the Canadian Olympic Committee, rewards Canadian Olympic gold medallists $20,000, silver medallists $15,000, and bronze medallists $10,000.

But Canadian Paralympic medallists don't receive any financial reward from the Canadian Paralympic Committee, which is separate from the COC.

The Current reached out to the COC for comment but have not yet received a response.

The more we normalize something, the more people see it, the more they actually stop focusing on the disability and [start] seeing the person first.-Brian McKeever

O'Neill said it's partly due to the difference in budget size between the COC and the CPC.

"Up until 2010 when the Games came to Vancouver ... there were only a handful, about a half a dozen people in the organization, and a very small budget," she said of the CPC.

"The decision has always been, with fewer dollars, to be able to look at more system development to enhance and support more athletes."

In the last eight to nine years, government and corporate sponsors have provided more funding, she said, allowing the CPC to build more programs and offer more services and support to Paralympic athletes in the country.

WATCH: CBC Kids explains Paralympic inequality

O'Neill said the Paralympic Foundation Board and the Canadian Paralympic Committee Board have raised this issue as "an uppermost priority to address" and are committed to resolving it in time for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris.

She added that a campaign "particularly targeted towards the growth and support of the community, which will also include a contribution for money for medals" will be revealed "in short order."

"It's as much the money as it is a symbol and signal that this sends: that an Olympic medal is as recognizable and valuable as a Paralympic medal," she said.

For McKeever, financially rewarding Paralympic medallists the same way as Olympic medallists would go "a long way to normalizing disability within society."

"The more we normalize something, the more people see it, the more they actually stop focusing on the disability and [start] seeing the person first," he said.

Written by Mouhamad Rachini. Produced by Paul MacInnis.