(Gatineau/Cantley, Quebec) - Big Thunder Nordic Ski Club proved that they are one of the strongest teams in North America. Athletes competed in the Haywood Noram Candy Cane Cup at Nakkertok Nordic Ski Centre in Cantley, Quebec from December 13th-15th. This race also served as selection races for World Cup events as well as the Atla Gas Canadian Sprint, FIS Continental Cup, Quebec Cup, Ontario Cup, and National Capital District Race Series.
The first day of competition, Friday, December 13th, started off with the AltaGas classic sprints. Big Thunder's Anna Stewart was racing up a category in the Under 20 division and skied away with the gold medal. Big Thunder's Kai Meekis, who also trains with the National Team Development Centre (NTDC) stood on the podium in 2nd place in the Under 20 Category.
On day two of racing, Stewart continued her strong skiing in the 5km skate race by placing 2nd in the Under 20 division. She was followed closely by Lakehead University and NTDC athlete Shaylynn Loewen. In the Under 16 (year of birth 2004) category, Carley Kiiskila placed a very impressive 2nd place in the 5km skate. Crossing the line just behind her was teammate Sarah Cullinan in 3rd. Kai Meekis put in another solid performance, landing on the top step of the podium in the Under 20 Men, year of birth 2000, in the 10km skate. Erik Schlyter, a rookie on the Lakehead University Nordic Ski Team skied to a 6th place in the 10 km skate Under 20, year of birth 2000 division while Big Thunder teammate Max Hollmann, cracked the top 10 in 9th. Sarah Kiiskila, a young up and comer from Big Thunder placed 3rd in the Under 14, year of birth 2007 category in the 2.5 km skate race.
On the final day of competition, an interval start classic race, Anna Stewart showed she is a force to be reckoned with and capped off the weekend with another win. This time in the 5 km Under 18 category. Sarah Cullinan and Carley Kiiskila had another set of very strong races, placing 2nd and 3rd respectively in their year of birth. Sarah Kiiskila landed on the podium once again in 3rd place in her year of birth while Shaylynn Loewen also had another podium performance coming in 2nd in the 10km classic. Kai Meekis also showed once again he is in great form this season by landing another podium (2nd place) in the Under 20 10km classic race.
Big Thunder Nordic and Lakehead University Varsity Nordic Ski Team's Head Coach, Adam Kates, was pleased with the teams performance, "Conditions were challenging with a relative lack of snow and I am very proud of how our teams stepped up and executed. Big Thunder and Lakehead athletes achieved 14 podium finishes over three days, proving that all the hard work in the off season is really paying off."
The team is looking forward to the next set of races on home soil in Thunder Bay after a well deserved Christmas Break. The Ontario Cup circuit is stopping in Thunder Bay at the Lappe Nordic Ski Centre from January 3rd-5th.
The Haywood NorAm Race Series is the premier Canadian domestic racing series and makes up the balance of Canada's FIS Continental Cup Series used to determine Continental Cup World Cup entrant.
Full results can be found on www.zone4.ca
Event Website: http://coupecandycanecup.ca
