Monday, Feb. 20, 2023
Image: Molly Caldwell, Biathlon (Credit: Paul Klements)
It was another successful day for Team BC at the PEI 2023 Canada Winter Games on Monday as the province stood on the podium in biathlon, karate, gymnastics and table tennis, winning a total of six medals on the day.
In the first-ever karate competition at the Canada Games, BC swept the top of the podium in the male and female kata events with gold medals from Oonah Gamboa (Vancouver) and Haruki Moni (Richmond).
BC’s nine total medals are enough to lead the medal standings through two days of competition ahead of Ontario (8) and Alberta (8).
Team BC Today
- Biathlon: One day and one medal for biathlon as Molly Caldwell (Golden) won a silver medal in the women’s 6km sprint. Liam Simons (Prince George) led the men, finishing fifth in the men’s 7.5km sprint. Next up: pursuit events on Tuesday.
- Curling (F): Team Rempel dropped a close match on Monday after opening with a win on Sunday, losing 8-7 to Quebec. BC is back in action on Tuesday when they will match up with Newfoundland and Labrador.
- Freestyle Skiing: Slopestyle competition was delayed by inclement weather on Monday. Qualifications will now start on Tuesday morning and the final has been moved to Wednesday.
- Gymnastics: The artistic gymnastics team event saw BC pick up a silver medal on the men’s side with the women’s team event set to go on Tuesday. In the trampoline synchro event, BC finished 5th in women’s and 6th in men’s.
- Hockey (M): BC bounced back from an opening-day loss to Ontario to post a 12-2 victory over Nova Scotia on Monday. The team will be back in action on Tuesday against an undefeated Alberta squad in Pool B action.
- Karate: BC athletes were on the podium three times today as karate made its Canada Games debut. BC flag-bearer Oonah Gamboa (Vancouver) and Haruki Mori (Richmond) won gold and Olivia Brodie (Victoria) won bronze.
- Ringette: Monday’s game against Saskatchewan went to overtime where Izzy Beech (Port Coquitlam) provided the dagger, sending BC to a 8-7 victory. Next up is a matchup on Tuesday with a Nova Scotia team looking for their first win .
- Speed Skating (Short): It was a day full of preliminary competition, qualifications and quarterfinals in the 1500m and 500m events. The 1500m semifinals will take place on Tuesday while 500m events resume on Thursday. Full results.
- Squash: Three Team BC athletes are set to compete for a gold medal on Tuesday after a successful day on the court. Twin sisters Ocean and Spring Ma (Richmond) will face off in the women’s final while Jacob Lin (Richmond) will take on Quebec’s Karim Michael on the men’s side.
- Table Tennis: David Mandelstam (Vancouver) became Team BC’s first double medallist of the Games, teaming up with Zonggang Li (Langley) to win bronze in male doubles after taking home bronze on Feb. 19 in mixed doubles.
- Wheelchair Basketball: It was a successful opening day for wheelchair basketball as BC beat Manitoba 66-26 in their opener. Nicholas van Bakel (Pender Island) had 26 points to lead the way on offense. Ontario (0-1) is next on the docket for BC on Tuesday.
Medallists
- Gold | Oonah Gamboa | Karate | Female Kata
- Gold | Haruki Mori | Karate | Male Kata
- Silver | Molly Caldwell | Biathlon | 6km Sprint
- Silver | Artistic Gymnastics | Male Team Event
- Bronze | Zonggang Li and David Mandelstam | Table Tennis | Doubles (M)
- Bronze | Olivia Brodie | Karate | Female Kata
Team BC Talks
Oonah Gamboa (Vancouver) | Kata | Karate | On winning the first karate gold medal at the Canada Winter Games and the pressure of being the Team BC flag-bearer at the Opening Ceremony.
“I’m very excited and honoured to receive this first gold medal for karate at the Canada Winter Games. Definitely, before we arrived I felt the pressure. But, while I was carrying the flag I felt my team behind me and I was very honoured just to be there and represent our province.”
Olivia Brodie (Victoria) | Kata | Karate | On winning a bronze medal and being on the podium with Oonah Gamboa.
“It feels awesome to represent BC and to do it with my best friend [Oonah Gamboa] who I’ve been friends with for over 10 years. It’s very cool to be on the podium with her.”
Haruki Mori (Richmond) | Kata | Karate | On winning gold
“I am feeling very happy being able to win a gold medal for Team BC, especially as this is the first-ever Winter Games for karate. I am happy to be the first one. It’s been very exciting to be at the Games”
David Mandelstam (Vancouver) | Table Tennis - M Doubles | On winning his second bronze medal of the Games.
“It feels really great to get two medals. It’s honestly an honour. I’ve worked super hard for this. We all as a team, we have worked so hard and we just have got to go for it, go for our dreams.We have lots of confidence now and motivation.”
Zonggang (Terry) Li (Langley) | Table Tennis - Male Doubles | On winning bronze “I’m glad I’m here. We all trained really hard. Obviously, we have a lot of support behind us and because of that, we are here. Nothing is guaranteed, everything is sweat and heart and hard-earned. We prepared a lot. We know there are tough teams across Canada. We just played our best and this is our result.”
Team BC Spotlight
Team BC Tomorrow (Tuesday, Feb. 21)
*medal opportunity | Times in AST (PST +4hrs)
9:00am – Table Tennis | Team Event (M) | vs Ontario | PEI Convention Centre
9:00am – Karate | Kumite Competition | Preliminary | Canada Games Multi-Sport Dome
9:20am – Speed Skating (Short) | 1500m | Semifinals | North Rustico Canada Games Centre
*9:45am – Speed Skating (Long) | 1500m Male | Final | Halifax Oval
*10:00am – Biathlon (M) | 10km Pursuit | Final | Mark Arendz Provincial Ski Park at Brookvale
10:00am – Gymnastics (Artistic) | Team Event (F) Final rd. 1 | Norton Diamond Soccer Complex
11:00am – Table Tennis | Team Event (F) | vs Saskatchewan | PEI Convention Centre
11:45am – Freestyle Skiing | Slopestyle Qualifications | Mark Arendz Provincial Ski Park at Brookvale
12:00pm – Karate | Kumite Competition | Finals | Canada Games Multi-Sport Dome
*12:11pm – Speed Skating (Short) | 1500m | Finals | North Rustico Canada Games Centre
12:30pm – Hockey (M) | vs Alberta | Preliminary | Credit Union Place
12:30pm – Ringette | vs Nova Scotia | Preliminary | Cavendish Farms Wellness Centre
*12:30pm – Speed Skating (Long) | 1500m Female | Final | Halifax Oval
*1:00pm – Squash | Female Final | Eastlink Centre
1:00pm – Wheelchair Basketball | vs Ontario | Preliminary | Chi-Wan Young Sport Centre
*1:15pm – Biathlon | 7.5km Pursuit (F) | Final | Mark Arendz Provincial Ski Park at Brookvale
1:30pm – Speed Skating (Short) | Team Relay (F) | Semifinal | North Rustico Canada Games Centre
1:30pm – Gymnastics (Artistic) | Team Event (F) Final rd. 2 | Norton Diamond Soccer Complex
*2:00pm – Squash | Male Final | Eastlink Centre
2:00pm – Curling (F) | vs NL | Preliminary | Silver Fox Entertainment Complex
2:08pm – Speed Skating (Short) | Team Relay (M) | Semifinal | North Rustico Canada Games Centre
3:20pm – Freestyle Skiing | Big Air Qualification | Mark Arendz Provincial Ski Park at Brookvale
*5:00pm – Gymnastics (Artistic) | Team Event (F) Final | Norton Diamond Soccer Complex
*7:00pm – Freestyle Skiing | Big Air Finals | Mark Arendz Provincial Ski Park at Brookvale