The Whitewater Freeride Club skied well at a regional competition at Kicking Horse Mountain Resort for the second weekend in a row. Six skiers had podium finishes and there were strong individual performances from the club.
Sam Woodward just before he dropped into his run. He placed third in Boy’s 15-18.
“What a weekend,” said coach Peter Velisek. “The finals were electric, the kids were totally charged. They skied so well and we had a bunch of podium finishes.”
In the 15 to 18 year old category it was two Sams on the podium with Sam Kuch first and Sam Woodward third. Jesse Thurston won the 12 to 14 year old category. Both Thurston’s and Kuch’s wins were repeats from last weekend’s national event.
Savannah Leishman won the girls 15 to 18 year old category with Haley Cooke in third and Andi Belland fourth. In the seven to 11 year old category, Adam Kuch claimed third.
Velisek said there were also some “amazing” individual performances within the team.
“A bunch of team members had runs where it all came together for them and they were able to step into that next level of their potential and their skiing. As coaches it made us all pretty proud.”
Beside Velisek, coaches Dano Slater and Peter Then also accompanied the athletes. There was a one day qualifier run for all three age categories, followed by a final the next day.
This weekend the club travels to a national competition at Lake Louise where skiers ages 12 to 18 aim to gain points towards their final standings which determine if they will qualify for the North American championships.
Kicking Horse regional event results:
Boys 7-11
Adam Kuch: 3rd
Ryan Kelly: 5th
Boys 12-14
Jesse Thurston: 1st
Noah McBriar: 7th
Liam Herbert: 13th
Elias Lutz: 18th
Girls 15-18
Savannah Leishman: 1st
Haley Cooke: 3rd
Andi Belland: 4th
Boys 15-18
Sam Kuch: 1st
Sam Woodward: 3rd
Ben Woodward: 9th
Jeff Ashton: 12th
Liam Kelly: 13th
Sam Howard: 17th
Jona Caney: 18th
Brendan Kelly: 20th
