Team BC is fast on the trails at Otway
By Carolynn Boomer, Team BC Mission Staff
Another great day for Team BC today both in podium performances and strong finishes for flag points. To start the day off was the para Nordic (PN) men sit-ski 5km race. Ethan Hess (Pemberton) had a fast second lap and finish to place fourth while Sam Piercy (North Vancouver) DNF. In the women’s PN sit-ski 5km, golden girl Emily Suchy (Revelstoke) blazed through the course with a nice lead over her competitor to win her third gold medal of the 2015 Canada Winter Games.
“I felt pretty fantabulous over the line,” said Suchy. “The first lap was super smooth, I was smiling the whole way. Then the second lap was still pretty good but I should have started sprinting earlier.”
In the PN men’s standing 5km race, Andy Lin (Burnaby) was our fastest Team BC athlete, placing fourth despite a couple of falls near the end of the course. In the women’s standing was Emily Weekes (Vancouver) winning the silver medal, her second medal of the Games.
In the able-bodied women’s 10km free mass start, the Team BC girls were pretty close together finishing neck and neck. Eliza-Jane Kitchen (North Vancouver) was ninth with a fall on the course and a time of 0:27:47.3. Right behind her was Hannah Mehain (Vernon) in 10th with a time of 0:27:47.7. Next it was 13-year-old Molly Miller (Kimberley) coming in hard for 12th with a time of 0.28:46.0. Kajsa Heyes (North Vancouver) came right behind Miller to finish 13th at 0:28:58.1 and was happy with her race. Katie Weaver (North Vancouver) placed 26th, skiing 0:31:01.1.
The men’s 15km free mass start was crazy and the Team BC men looked great throughout the course. Many fans and coaches were positioned all over the course, running from site to site to watch the team. A great finish at the line was Team BC’s David Palmer (Revelstoke) capturing the bronze medal with a time of 0:35:25.8 and right behind him was teammate Geoffrey Richards (Rossland) 0:35:35.6 for fourth. Next was Colin Ferrie (Kimberley) coming in at seventh with a time of 0:35:47.1. Gareth Williams (Kelowna) had a good race placing 12th at 0:37:23.1. Next it was Julien Locke (Nelson) in 13th with a time of 0:37:37.7.
Team BC coach Chris Manhard said after the day, “I am proud of the athletes and how they performed today. It reflects well on the upcoming relay races and should bode well for podium finishes.”
See Canada Games live streaming at www.canadagamestv.ca and follow live updates on Twitter from @GoTeamBC with the hashtag #TBCXCSkiing.