Whistler Olympic Park, BC (Mar 27, 2013) – With conditions heating up in Callaghan Valley as the week goes by, the classic short sprints were blazing fast today. The categories for the day were Juvenile Boys and Girls, Junior Boys and Girls, Para-Nordic Standing Men and Women, and Para-Nordic Sit Ski Men and Women.The Para-Nordic Standing Men and Women both did a 1.2 km classic sprint to start the day off. Leaving 15 seconds apart, the athletes are able to hunt down those in front of them. For the Standing Men there was a qualifier and a final while the Women raced their qualifier as a final.
Andy Lin of the Nordic Racers was today’s winner in the Para-Nordic Standing Men. Louis Fortin of Team New Brunswick came in second and Gabriel Denis of Temiskaming Nordic took third. The fastest qualifying time was Denis with a time of 4:13.On the Ladies’ side, Christine Henry of Walden Cross Country took the win in a time of 4:44. Unfortunately for Kanata Nordic’s Margarita Gorbounova, her guide, Andrea Bundon, took a tumble, forcing her to veer off-course and placing her in second with a time of 4:49. The Para-Nordic Sit Men and Women raced a 750 m course. On the Men’s side, Yves Bourque of Mauriski won with a time of 2:15. Kenny LaCome, who travelled all the way from New Mexico to race this week, took second in a time of 2:39. Kevin Priebe took bronze in a time of 7 minutes and 8 seconds.
On the Women’s side yesterday’s winner Emily Suchy of Revelstoke Nordic won the 1 km classic sprint with a time of 2:12. Second place went to Walden Cross Country’s Tanya Quesnel with a time of 2:57 and third was Ana Lucas of U of A Nordic in a time of 3:20. The Juvenile Boys’ race was won by Philippe Boucher of Skibec followed by Whitehorse Cross Country Ski Club’s Caelan Mclean and Edmonton Nordic’s Luke Gerwing. Gerwing was the fastest qualifying time of the day for the Juvenile Boys’ race with a time of 2:34. Katie Weaver from Hollyburn Cross Country Ski Club dominated the Juvenile Girls’ race from start to finish through each heat followed by Sara McLean of Foothills Nordic and Avalon Wasteneys of Strathcona Nordics. Weaver was also the fastest qualifier with a time of 2:52. Three-time medal winner so far this week Ricardo Izquierdo-Bernier of Fondeurs-Laurentides took the Junior Boys’ 1.2 km race today followed by Thomas Hardy of Larch Hills and Antoine Briand of Skibec. Joey Foster of Midland Nordic posted the fastest qualifying time of 2 minutes 59 seconds. In the Junior Girls’ race, yesterday’s winner Sophie Carrier-Laforte of Skinouk won today’s race, beating out Skibec’s Andrée-Anne Théberge and Team Hardwood’s Jennifer Jackson. Carrier-Laforte was also the fastest time of the day for the Junior Girls with 3;28.
Full results can be found at www.skinationals.com or www.zone4.ca. Pictures can be accessed through the XC Ski Nationals 2013 Flickr site at http://flic.kr/ps/2rnrj3.
Ski Nationals 2013 would like to thank event sponsors Haywood Securities, Buff Canada, Clif Bar, The Nordic Shop of Squamish BC, Deep Cove Outdoors, Impact Canopies Canada, Q Energy, Executive Suites Hotel & Resort, the Whistler Question, The Squamish Chief, Avis, Salomon, Fischer, Swix, Nesters Market, Halti Skiwear, Sauce Headwear, Bliz Active Eyewear, One Way, Rossignol, Ski Go Wax, RC, Icebreaker, Whistler Hotels, Silverfoot, Whistler Chocolate, Whistler Brewing Company, as well as the support of the Whistler Athletes’ Centre, and Hosting BC.