SHERBROOKE, QC – The second week of competition has officially begun at the 2013 Canada Summer Games and Team BC is starting off strong, winning medals on the water and at the track.
It was a good day for the Canoe-Kayak team as they paddled their way to the podium. Canada Games alumnus Brian Malfesi (Maple Ridge), was the first to score some hardware at Lac-des-Nations, winning silver in the men’s K1 500m event.
Competing at his second Canada Games, the 19-year old, four-time K1 National Champion, had won bronze at the 2009 Canada Summer Games in the men’s K2 200m event.
“It’s really great to kick things off for Team BC at these Games,” said Malfesi. “Week two is looking good and I hope to continue to represent my team well.”
Keiffer Johnson (Kamloops) and Zachary Morgan (Kamloops) were also successful on the water today, winning bronze in the men’s C2 1000m. Johnson and Morgan crossed the finish line in a boat that had previously helped another team get on the podium.
The boat’s original owners won bronze for Team Kazakhstan at the 2013 ICF Junior and Under 23 Canoe Spring World Championships in Welland, ON. Johnson and Morgan bought the gently-used BC-blue boat from the team and named her “Kaz” in honour of her previous wins.
Team BC ladies also performed well, making the A final in th IC-4 500m. The team comprised of Danielle Celine Caron (Nanaimo), Gemma Hansen (Prince George), Brook McLean (Kamloops), and Yasmine Natasha Petra Semeniuk (Maple Ridge) finished 5th overall at the end of the day.
Athletics had a great day as Jessye Brockway (Mill Bay) made history in the women’s para shot put, an inaugural event at the Games. Throwing a 5’.81m for a 529 pointstand, Brockway took bronze and her name will forever be enshrined in Canada Games records.
Preliminary rounds saw BC qualify in almost all events today, showing a promising performance in the first day of competition. On August 13th BC will compete in the following finals: men's para shot put, women’s para discus, women’s shot put, men's decathlon, women’s 2000m steeplechase and men's 3000m steeplechase
It was also a good day for BC’s fencing team. Sixteen year old Zoe Clarke fenced her way into the final and will compete for gold on Friday, August 16th.
“Winning today was unreal,” said Clarke. “It’s amazing and I feel really good. Going into it, I was confident in my actions and I knew I wanted to drive and fight for every single point.”
Today brought BC’s total medal count to 65, putting Team BC in fourth place overall in medal standings behind Alberta whit 70. Ontario is leading the medal count with m 115 thus far and Quebec is in second place with 72.
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About Team BC
Every four years the Province of British Columbia assembles a team of athletes, coaches, managers and mission staff to represent the province at Canada's premiere multi-sport events - the Canada Winter Games, the Canada Summer Games and the Western Canada Summer Games. Representing the best in BC, they are known as Team BC. The Team BC program is more than British Columbia's best; it is also about building excellence. For some athletes, the Canada Games are a goal along the way to what they hope will be success in sport at major multi-sport Games including Olympic and Paralympic Games.
About the Canada Games
The Canada Games are a national multi-sport competition with participation from every province and territory in Canada. The Games are held every two years, alternating between winter and summer. The 2013 Canada Summer Games will be held August 2 – 17, 2013 in Sherbrooke, Quebec, bringing together approximately 4,500 athletes who will be competing in 20 disciplines, along with coaches, managers and officials from coast to coast.
For more information on Team BC, including latest results, athlete profiles and calendar of upcoming events, visit www.teambc.org. High resolution images are available for download through flickr.com or directly on Team BC’s website.
Team BC Media Contact in Sherbrooke:
Tina Sarazin
Media Manager, Team BC
Mobile: 778-989-8462
tinasarazin@gmail.com