DARTMOUTH, NS – Junior and Under 23 paddlers battled it out today at the Canadian Sprint CanoeKayak Team Trials on Lake Banook in Dartmouth, NS. The trials are being used as the main selection assessment for Canada’s team at the Junior and U23 World Championships taking place in Szeged, Hungary in August.
Brian Malfesi (photo: Bernard Irvin)
Zane Clarke of Selkirk, MB started off the afternoon finals by nailing down a win in the Junior Men’s K1 1000. Robert Laureijs of Dartmouth, NS was second and Alex Brent of Maple Ridge, BC was third. Clarke who has moved to Dartmouth to train felt quite satisfied to pull off the win after everything he’s put into preparing for today’s race.
“It took a lot of sacrifice to win. I haven’t been home in about five months now, I haven’t seen my parents, family, sister. I’ve given up a lot of things to be here so that’s what it was,” Clarke said with a smile.
The Junior Men’s C1 1000 left several competitors gasping on the finish line with Sean Barich of Mississauga, ON taking the top spot. Zach Morgan of Kamloops, BC was second and Tyler Graves of Waverley, NS was third.
Brian Malfesi of Maple Ridge, BC took the win in the U23 Men’s K1 1000. Marshall Hughes of Waverley, NS was second and Jarret Kenke of Saskatoon, SK was third.“The last 200 metres I thought ‘I need to make a weekend out of it,’” said Barich. “I just tried to go as hard as I could to the finish line.”
Olivia Denman (photo: Bernard Irvin)
“It was really hard out there,” Malfesi said after his race. “It was a long race with the headwind but I knew I had the endurance. Marshall was coming up on me and he had a great race too. It’s always so tight.”
In the Men’s C1 1000, Marc Tarling of Pointe-Claire, QC won with Ottawa’s Drew Hodges pulling in for second place. Craig Spence of Waverley, NS pushed hard to reel in third place.
“I’ve been chasing a good training group all the time. I wanted to do my best to make the team again this year. I hope C2’s go well tomorrow and see if we can build on last year’s results,” said Tarling who finished fourth in the C2 1000 last year at U23 World Championships with Roland Varga of Richmond Hill, ON.
Olivia Denman of Dartmouth, NS won the Junior Women’s K1 200. Kady Leard of Waverley, NS was second and Ariane Cyr of Lac-Beauport, QC was third.
Katie Vincent (photo: Bernard Irvin)
“It feels good after last year not really coming close to making Junior Worlds last year and winning this year,” said Denman. “Winning today was a good reward and a good start to the season.”
Katie Vincent of Mississauga, ON returned with a vengeance and is looking to represent Canada for a second time the Junior Women’s C1 200. Vincent nearly won a Junior World gold medal last year when she and her teammate fell in at the line.
“I’ll hopefully come back with a medal this year, I was pretty close last year and I want to redeem myself and come back with a nice gold medal,” said Vincent. “It’s going to be some more hard work and determination and never giving up.”
Jillian Perrone of Oakville, ON was second in the Junior Women’s C1 200 and Halifax’s Nicole Jessop was third.
Andréanne Langlois made it a decisive victory in the U23 Women’s K1 200 as she finished with a lead of nearly a second. Halifax’s Alexa Irvin was second and Jessica Leduc of Trois-Rivières, QC was third.
“The whole race was pretty awesome,” said Langlois. “Competition is really strong – it’s 200 metres and anything can happen but I was happy about my performance and I felt good on the water right from the start.”
In U23 Men’s K2 200, Marc-Alexandre Gagnon and Charles-Antoine Girouard, both of Trois-Rivières, QC took the win. The young Nova Scotian crew of Liam O’Brian (Dartmouth) and Alexander Scott (Halifax) finished second. Colin Black of Carleton Place, ON and Dartmouth’s Austin Denman were third.
The Junior Men’s K2 200 final was won by Maxime Beauchesne of Trois-Rivières, QC and Duncan Sibthorpe of Pointe-Claire, QC. The Manitobia crew James Lavalee and Tristan Schneider were second. Harrison Chambers of Mississauga and Ottawa’s Victor Turcanu finished third.
Races will continue on Lake Banook tomorrow starting at 8:30 a.m. CanoeKayak Canada’s High Performance committee will name athletes to crew boat assessment camps and Junior and U23 World Teams after the trials conclude.
Photos by Bernard Irvin
CanoeKayak Canada is the national governing body for competitive paddling in Canada. The organization’s vision is to be a Canadian sport for families, communities and champions. From supporting clubs to developing a competitive National Team, CanoeKayak Canada works to grow a sport which is a rich part of Canada’s heritage.
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Media Contact:
Ian Miller
Communications and Marketing Officer, CanoeKayak Canada
613.314.1352