Skip to content
Join our Newsletter

Lugers on the right track

Mount Currie resident Elainah Andrew wins Youth C Girls category

This past weekend the Whistler Sliding Centre hosted the Fast Track Capital Youth Canadian Luge Championships, with the top young athletes from tracks in Whistler and Calgary facing off for national titles.

It was B.C. versus Alberta.

Next up is the Junior Championships on Mar. 5-6, for ages 16 to 18.

The range of athletes was from age 8 to age 16, and rankings were based on cumulative time over two runs.

Several of the local sliders made the podium, which is impressive considering that youth programs have been underway locally for four years compared to 23 years for the Calgary track. However, home track advantage helps and some kids have been sliding for four days a week this past winter.

In Youth A Men it was all Alberta with Mitchell Malyk, Mitchell Walls and Tim Stone placing first through third.

In Youth A Women, local slider Jenna Spencer was the only B.C. slider and managed a second place finish, between Tara Disturnal and Emily Pacheco of Alberta.

Reid Watts managed the same finish in the Youth B Boys, placing second between Albertans Evan Wildman and Jaron Dyck.

National team prospect Nicole Pidperyhora won the Youth B Girls, followed by Albertans Maylen Snith and Elise Burton.

B.C. dominated in Youth C Boys, with Adam Shippit in first, Nicky Klimchuk-Brown second and Yamil Galaz third.

B.C.'s Elainah Andrew won the Youth C Girls by close to two seconds, with Brooke Apshkrum and Sam Judson placing second and third.

Veronica Ravenna of B.C. won the Open Youth race, followed by Michaela Gilchrist of Alberta and Parker Reid of B.C.

B.C. racers Brendan Shippit and Mathew Susko were first and third in Youth D Boys with Cody Walsh of Alberta in third.