Mid-Island athletes had a big hand in helping the Vancouver Island-Central Coast Zone 6 team to the top medal haul in the 2016 B.C. Summer Games, held last weekend in Abbotsford.
Kaia Fuchs of Nanoose Bay (synchronized swimming), Arthur Miller of Parksville (field lacrosse) and Syvanna McNichol of Parksville (towed water sports) each won gold medals as part of their respective Zone 6 teams.
Several more of the 14 area athletes representing Zone 6 collected individual hardware during the three days of competition and camaraderie.
McNichol won her gold with the Zone 6 squad in the combined team competition, in which each competitor is scored in three separate water skiing or water boarding events. She also won an individual bronze in the girls 14-17-year-old wake boarding while tying for fourth place in slalom and finishing sixth in wakeskate.
Fuchs of Nanoose Bay won gold with the Zone 6 synchronized swimming team in the 13-15 age group, which amassed 63.3262 points to top Fraser River by more than three-and-a-half points. In the individual figures competition Fuchs placed fourth, one spot out of the medals and less than a point behind bronze medal-winning Zone 6 teammate Mara Lambert-Wilson of Victoria.
Kaia Fuchs of Nanoose Bay and her Zone 6 teammates get a taste of gold after winning the synchronized swimming competition at the B.C. Summer Games in Abbotsford Saturday. — Image credit: Richard D. Abbot/B.C. Summer Games
Miller earned his gold medal as part of winning Zone 6 team in the field lacrosse tournament. The team topped Zone 4 (Fraser River) in the gold-medal final.
In track and field, Shane Stewart of Nanoose Bay earned a pair of bronze medals. Stewart placed third in the men’s 100-metre hurdles in a time of 15.37 seconds after running to a 15.31 qualifying time. He also ran the opening leg for the Zone 6 4×100 relay team and helped the squad to bronze with a time of 47.93 seconds.
In addition, Stewart raced to a 12.93-second time in the 100-metre dash but failed to reach the finals.
Libby Elliott of Coombs claimed bronze in the girls discus throw with a toss of 31.12 metres. Elliott added a 10th-place finish in the javelin throw, with a distance of 27.39 metres.
In other track and field results, Katherine Morrison of Nanoose Bay placed sixth in the girls 1,500-metre race walk in 10 minutes, 4.07 seconds, and Zone 6 teammate Elise Elston of Errington was eighth in 10:37.35.
Elston also placed 15th in the shot put with a distance of 7.06 metres, and Morrison was one spot behind with a mark of 6.56m. Elston added a 12th-place showing in the hammer throw, with a mark of 26.84m, and Elliott followed in 14th with a throw of 26.15.
Rhiannon Terpstra of Parksville had a ninth-place showing in the women’s 800-metre prelims, in 2:32.60, missing the finals heat by a single spot.
In women’s golf, Kayli Melissa of Parksville came home with a bronze in the team competition with Zone 6. Individually, she placed 11th with a two-round total of 177. Melissa qualified for the Summer Games in her first year of golf.
The mid-Island medal gathering continued in the swimming pool. Ethan Stannard of Parksville got in on the act with a bronze in the men’s 1,500-metre freestyle, in 18:04.26. That race drew 19 entrants. Stannard also raced to a seventh-place finish in both the men’s 400-metre freestyle and the 200 freestyle
Shayne Blandin of Qualicum Beach competed in Special Olympics swimming during the 2016 B.C. Summer Games Saturday in Abbotsford. — Image credit: Paul Funk/B.C. Summer Games
In the Special Olympics swimming events, Shayne Blandin of Qualicum Beach claimed bronze in the women’s 50-metre butterfly and narrowly missed a second podium finish with a fourth-place showing in the women’s 100-metre individual medley. Blandin also placed 6th in the women’s 50-metre freestyle, the 50 backstroke and the 100 freestyle.
Oceanside Special Olympics teammate Amanda Stewart of Parksville had a near-miss with the podium, placing fourth in the 100 backstroke as well as 5th in the 50 backstroke and the 100 free, and 8th in the 50 free.
Other local competitors in the bi-annual games included Zach Wheldon of Parksville, who placed fifth with the Zone 6 box lacrosse team; and Yehia El Karsh of Parksville, who also placed fifth with the Zone 6 boys soccer squad.
The mid-Island delegation included coaches Jeff Dinn of Parksville (golf), Keith Radix of Nanoose Bay (baseball) and Jenn Erickson and Taylor Chestnut (track and field).
The Vancouver Island-Central Coast zone topped the medal haul among the eight zones competing amassing 171 medals with 65 gold, 48 silver and 58 bronze.
Fraser Valley followed with 143 and Fraser River was third with 135, edging Vancouver-Coastal zone (131).
—NEWS Staff
