Out of the ordinary

He's just like any other sport-loving boy, except for one thing

By LAURA CZEKAJ, SUN MEDIA



Andre Laflamme is a 12-year-old boy who likes to play hockey and has a wicked slap shot.

There's nothing out of the ordinary about a red-blooded Canadian lad enjoying a little ice time. And ordinary is how Andre sees himself.

What he doesn't think to mention about himself is the same thing that others fail to notice when they see the swift-footed right winger play -- Andre is missing his left hand.

Disabled by definition, but not giving any signs of knowing it, Andre is involved in a steady stream of sports -- volleyball, basketball, hockey and baseball.

In all sports other than hockey, Andre plays unencumbered by a prosthesis, preferring instead to match his natural athletic skills against two-handed competitors.


LIKE A GLOVE

The cone-like attachment that fits a hockey glove and tightly holds a stick was designed for Andre by a prosthetist in Alberta who compared the task to "making a wrist" from scratch.

One-handed or not, this kid is a good hockey player. In fact, he is among the best on his Peewee A non-competitive house team, says Jacques Sevigny, who co-coaches the Cumberland Mustangs.

"The teams that we play against, they say, 'Watch that line, that's the kid with the one hand,' " says his coach.

It's Andre's slap shot that has goalies quivering in anticipation of the puck's impact. It's a shot whose speed and accuracy has been compared to that of a grown man's.

"The goalie on my team said he was scared of my shot," says Andre.

Other players might be faster than Andre, but his advantage is control of the puck.

Andre was born with only his right hand, a fact that barely fazed his parents, Laurel and Lionel Laflamme, who saw their little boy as a complete person who would just have to try harder.

Their older child, Amanda, 14, doesn't consider her brother to be handicapped -- pesky maybe, but not handicapped.

NO EXCUSES

The family moved to Ottawa, by way of Grand Prairie, Alberta, a little over a year ago for Lionel's job. It's the family's eighth or ninth move -- they've lost track.

Every new town means a new hockey team for Andre, who started skating at age three and played competitive hockey in Alberta.

"When we were trying out we would make sure not to tell anybody that he's missing a hand so that he wouldn't get any special treatment," says Lionel.

It's clear that Andre's parents decided early on their son was not going to use his lack of a hand as a reason for not doing something.

"There was no such thing as can't," says Laurel. "When he was younger, his thing was 'Practise, practise, practise.' Maybe he didn't do it the same as others, but the end result was the same."

Andre's new teammates eventually notice the slightly reddened stump where his left hand should be, but they tend to forget about it just as quickly. They figure if Andre doesn't consider himself handicapped, why should they?

Andre is aware of the praise that flows from his on-ice talents. What he doesn't seem to realize is that his performance in spite of his missing hand is an inspiration to his peers.

He sometimes forgets he's not ordinary.

http://www.ottawasun.com/News/OttawaAndRegion/2008/01/19/4781809-sun.html

[虔谦]

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