THUNDER BAY -- The Lake Superior Ski Division is excited to offer a new race series for the 2021-2022 Nordic ski season.
The series consists of five races over four months culminating in overall age group winners. The series is open to athletes of all ages, although the target audience is development athletes up to the U18 category.
The LSSD race series will give district athletes the opportunity to participate in several race events with a variety of race formats. The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in the cancellation of all local races and restricted travel to out of town races in the 2020-2021 season. Athletes, coaches and organizers are very excited to get back to racing. As per the Cross Country Ski Ontario vaccine mandate, proof of vaccination is required for all eligible athletes, coaches and volunteers.
LSSD is one of four geographical ski divisions administered by XCSO under the national cross country ski organization Nordiq Canada. Victor Wiltmann, the Technical Director of XCSO, organized a committee to develop this series with input from Lappe Nordic Ski Club, Big Thunder Nordic Ski Club, Lappe Ski Centre and Kamview Nordic Centre.
The race series kicked off on Saturday at the Lappe Ski Centre with an Interval Start Free Technique race hosted by the Lappe Nordic Ski Club. The race was the first official cross country ski race in Ontario since the start of the global pandemic.
The top female skiers in the U12 category were Hayden Nisula in 1st, Abigail Skomoroh in 2nd and Forest Wheeler in 3rd. The top male skiers in the U12 category were Brody Horihan in 1st, Cameron Carter in 2nd and Palmer Hunt in 3rd. The U14 category saw Kaia Hakanen (f) and Reid Thompson (m) take the top spots, closely followed by Madison Nisula (f) and Rudy Balabuck (m) in 2nd, and Klara van Duyn (f) and Kai Hautala (m) in 3rd.
The top female skiers in the U16 category were Min Dobson in 1st, Delaney Summers in 2nd and Kytalyn Smith in 3rd. The top male skiers in the U16 category were Willem van Duyn in 1st, Cedric Martel in 2nd and Sebastien Doucet in 3rd. The top female skiers in the U18 category were Sarah Cullinan in 1st and Isobel Stewart in 2nd. The top male skiers in the U18 category were Eagan Symonds in 1st, Joel Haering in 2nd and Edgar Sarrazin in 3rd.
The open category saw Shaylynn Loewen (f) and Erik Schlyter (m) take the top spots, closely followed by Sarah Peters (f) and Conor McGovern (m) in 2nd, and Tierza Wilson (f) and Tobias Quinn (m) in 3rd.
All results found here! https://zone4.ca/race/2021-11-27/4946529c/results/
The next 2 races in the series will be held January 28 to 30 in conjunction with the XCSO Ontario Cup again hosted by the Lappe Nordic Ski Club at the Lappe Ski Centre. Results from this event will also determine the LSSD team heading to the Ontario Winter Games in Renfrew in March 2022.
The 4th race in the series happens on Saturday, February 5 when Big Thunder Nordic Ski Club will host a Mass Start Free Technique event at Kamview Nordic Centre. This race will be held in conjunction with the 8th Annual Tour de Kamview.
The series finale will be a Mass Start Classic Technique race on Saturday, March 12 hosted by Lappe Nordic Ski Club at the Lappe Ski Centre.
Each race will be subject to the XCSO Return to Competition guidelines in effect on the date of the race with guidance from the Thunder Bay District Health Unit.
Information about each race including location and registration dates, as well as individual and cumulative results will be published on the LSSD webpage on xcskiontario.ca.
