NTDC media release
THUNDER BAY -- Thunder Bay’s elite National Team Development Centre has named its team for the 2018/19 season.
As one of three National Training Centres for Canadian cross-country skiing, the Thunder Bay-based program will be looking to build on a successful 2017/18 by qualifying athletes for top-level events across Canada and around the world.
The team announcement was made in conjunction with NTDC’s first off-season training camp, a “Boot Camp” style orientation that involved fitness testing and team building. The grueling schedule included uphill running and rollerski time trials, as well as strength and VO2 max testing conducted at Lakehead University and Thrive Strength and Wellness in collaboration with experts from the Canadian Sport Institute.
The Boot Camp is part of an intensive 11-month training and racing program that works. NTDC athletes won a combined 23 medals at the Canadian National Championships in Thunder Bay last March, while team veterans Katherine Stewart-Jones and Bob Thompson both received nominations to race for Canada on the World Cup circuit. Last season was highlighted by a 12th place finish at the FIS World Junior Championships by NTDC rookie Graham Ritchie, which is one of the top results by a Canadian Junior over the past decade.
Following this success, Ritchie is one of three returning NTDC athletes to be named to the Canadian National Team. Katherine Stewart-Jones and Pierre Grall-Johnson also were named to the National U25 and Junior Teams respectively.
Other veteran athletes include Bob Thompson (Woodstock, ON), Julian Smith (Wiarton, ON), Angus Foster (Thunder Bay, ON), Fergus Foster (Thunder Bay, ON), Annika Richardson (Vancouver, BC), Sadie White (Thunder Bay, ON), and Lisle Compton (Kenora, ON). They will be joined by rookies Kai Meekis (Thunder Bay, ON), Heidi Stewart (Thunder Bay, ON) and Shaylynn Loewen (Parry Sound, ON)
Timo Puiras will return as Head Coach of NTDC for the 6th season, while Assistant Coach Camille Cheskey will return for his second season.
NTDC athletes will reside in Thunder Bay from May through October for off-season training. Highlights will include the Canada Day Rollerski Invitational to be held in the Waterfront District on July 1, as well as an altitude training camp in Park City, Utah. The competition season will begin in November with qualifying events for the World Cup circuit, before National level racing kicks off in December. NTDC skiers will be targeting the FIS World Junior Championships and World Senior Championships to be held in Finland and Austria, as well as the FIS World Cup Finals to be held in Quebec City in March.
NTDC Thunder Bay would like to thank the community of Thunder Bay for their generous support of the program, and looks forward to continued success in 2018/19.
