The Kimberley Alpine Team had a very successful first weekend of competition from January 11 to 14 at Red Mountain Resort in Rossland, BC and Panorama Mountain Resort outside of Invermere.
At the provincial zone race at Red Mountain, KAT athletes picked up a number of medals and top 10 finishes in giant slalom and slalom. The team saw quick success at the event, with Nicola Buchar winning the first race of the weekend and having that momentum carried into Sunday with Maren Jensen and Brayden Pasula both earning spots on the podium in giant slalom.
Meanwhile at the Panorama Timber Tour Event, KAT’s Freestyle Team, led by head coach Lucas Roach and assistant coach Josh Andreas, took home some medals with top performances in moguls, slopestyle and big air by Trent Walkley, Owen Cooper, Aarilynn Bertrand and Annika Cooper.
Program director and head coach Ben Cohen was thrilled with the success of all the athletes in both alpine and freestyle disciplines.
“The Panorama cold, the Red Mountain fog and the challenging course conditions at both resorts did not make for easy competitions, but the athletes overcame the adversities and had strong performances at both resorts,” Cohen said. “Our alpine and freestyle coaches were very impressed with the athletes’ hard work ethic, composure and overall enthusiasm.”
By the end of the weekend, six athletes had qualified for the 2018 BC Winter Games in Kamloops, a multi-sport event for youth athletes across the province. The Games are often the first exposure athletes have to an Olympic-style event and, for many, it’s the highlight of their amateur sporting careers.
Buchar, Jensen, and Jasmine Brenton qualified for the Kootenay Zone Alpine Ski Team, while Walkley, Annika Cooper, and Aidan Gareau qualified for the Kootenay Zone freestyle team. The Games will be held from February 22 to 25 in Kamloops and the skiing events will take place at Sun Peaks Resort.
The Kimberley Alpine Team consists of about 100 athletes from the ages of five to 17 and offers various programs including Nancy Greene (entry level) all mountain, competitive alpine racing and freestyle. Anyone interested in getting involved is asked to contact Ben Cohen or visit www.kimberleyalpineteam.ca for more information.