Backcountry skiing as a paraplegic with WIITE

Certain sport activities seem to be fantasies to resume when one becomes paraplegic. Now, however, it's one less: an avid fan of winter sports who is paralyzed from the waist down has recently returned to backcountry skiing with the help of an exoskeleton extension called WIITE.

WIITE is to be used with TWIICE: the exoskeleton developed by REHAssist engineers at EPFL in Lausanne, Switzerland. With TWIICE, users can manage daily activities like standing, walking and climbing stairs independently. With the extension WIITE, users can attach the exoskeleton to ski boots and skis. It also improves the bending and extending of knee and hip joints which replicates the body’s natural movements for activities like mountaineering and backcountry skiing. The only requirement is that “wearers must be able to use their upper bodies to operate the exoskeleton’s crutches, which provide balance and control.”

See how WIITE works in the following video with English subtitle and its press release.