Jim Byrnes as Ivan Kostelic

Jim plays Ivan Kostelic, a reporter whose years of service as a newspaperman have left him harder than most. Ivan was so very certain wheelchairs and the disabled did not belong in the 1984 Olympics and was extremely critical of Rick Hansen's mission to push himself around the world. He truly thought is was nothing more than a publicity stunt.

Jim comes to this role knowing intimately what disability means having lost both his legs in a highway accident. Playing Ivan asked everything of Jim. In turn, the actor created a character who challenges every aspect of what it means to be disabled.

Ivan pushes Rick into a crisis of confidence that redefines the way we look at ourselves, see how he challenges him in Heart of a Dragon.

www.jimbyrnes.org     www.imdb.com/name/nm0126325/