Having survived cancer three times, Michael Milton sees his Paralympic comeback after 20 years as another way to "squeeze the marrow out of life".
Australia's most decorated winter Paralympian, self-described "old-timer with a dad bod" Milton has set himself the challenge of competing at the 2026 Paralympic Games in Italy.
The 52-year-old alpine skier, who lost a leg to bone cancer as a nine-year-old, last competed at the Paralympics in Torino in 2006 and retired with 11 medals, including six golds.
Milton hadn't thought about competing at a sixth Winter Paralympics until August, when he was mulling the comebacks of Australian basketball great Lauren Jackson and American skier Lindsey Vonn.
Jackson came out of retirement at the age of 40 and helped the Opals claim bronze at the Paris Games - her fifth Olympic campaign 12 years after her last.
Vonn is out to compete in the 2026 Winter Olympic Games in Milano-Cortina after retiring in 2019.
Milton had the "crazy idea" while working and racing at Thredbo outside of his professional job, which is running Harry Potter-themed store Quizzically in Canberra.
"I'm older than (Jackson and Vonn), but I know I can still ski," Milton told AAP.
"I don't think you can come back after 20 years in track and field or swimming, but certainly in archery or shooting - skiing's in the middle here.
"I'm pretty sure some of the athletes will know about my comeback from my socials and stuff, but there'll be others, and they'll be like, 'Who is this old-timer with a dad bod?'
"And then, what I'm really hopeful for is that afternoon, they're going, 'How the hell did he beat me?'"
Milton, who first competed at the Paralympics in 1988, was among 14 Milano-Cortina aspirants at the Australian Paralympics team uniform unveiling in Sydney on Thursday.
The uniform, including ceremonial and competition wear, was designed by R.M. Williams, Karbon, XTM, New Balance and Birkenstock.
"I've got to be honest, the uniform is way too cool for me," Milton joked.
Milton says his bid for a sixth Paralympics is also driven by a desire to feel his body perform again.
He has battled cancer twice since retiring in 2006, having had bowel cancer in 2023.
"That cancer experience also says, you know, number four could be around the corner," Milton said.
"How do I make the most of the time I have? And how do I squeeze the marrow out of life?
"Life has got to be fun, you know."
Milton aims to qualify for five alpine events - slalom, giant slalom, super-G, downhill, and the combined (downhill and slalom).
With just five months left, the Canberra local will train in Austria from mid-November and race during December.
Already qualified to race in the World Cup series in giant slalom, Milton said his biggest challenge was funding as he's not part of the current Australian squad.
"It's not the ideal preparation, but I'm okay with that," Milton said.
"I've skied 7500 days of my life. That background of experience, that gives you confidence.
"For me, the positives of the comeback far outweigh the potential negatives."
