SHERBROOKE, QC – Team BC golfers teed off today at Milby Golf Club for the first round of the Canada Games tournament.
In the men’s individual play, Kevin Kwon (Maple Ridge) was the first to tee off, paired with Quebec’s Hugo Bernard and Ontario’s Austin James. Kwon, who is fresh off his win at the Canadian Junior Golf Championships, was even coming off the front nine. In the end, the 18-year old finished the round with 72, tied with fellow Team BC golfer Trevor Yu (Vancouver).
Mark Valliere (Courtenay), who was paired with Quebec’s Raphael Lapierre-Messier and Ontario’s Jake McNulty, had a great day on the links. He finished the round with 70, tied for first place with Quebec’s Étienne Papineau going into round two.
“I made birdies on the right holes at the right times,” said Valliere. “There are a lot of good golfers in this tournament and anything can happen in the second round.”
The ladies of golf also did well with Taylor Kim (Surrey) lighting it up and finishing with a 72 after the first round. Fellow Team BC golfer Naomi Ko (Victoria) is tied for fourth with Alberta’s Sabrine Garrison ending day one with 77, while Alexandra Kong (West Vancouver) finished her day with 79, tied with Annie Lacombe of Quebec.
All and all Team BC golf is off to a great start and spirits are high going into tomorrow as competition continues.
In cycling, BC’s young team took to the road race today. Cheered on by a small but vocal groupe of supporters, the women’s team held their own throughout the event, keeping up with the peloton for the majority of the race.
In the end, seasoned Quebec riders Alizee Brien, Adriane Provos and Elizabeth Albert swept the podium, taking gold, sliver and bronze respectively. Tessa Pinckston (White Rock), Brenna Pauly (Victoria) and young Gillian Ellsay (Courtenay) had a strong race and all finished in the top 10.
“It was tough,” said Pinckston after the race. “It comes down to the fact that the Quebec riders have more experience than me. This is my first year in a full season, but it was a great experience overall.”
On the men’s side, Adam deVos (Victoria) cycled a courageous road race, leading for approximately seven laps of the 120-km ride, only to be overtaken by a organized group of cyclists.
"Adam had a good ride, a really good ride," said head coach Jeff Ain (Burnaby). "He needed someone up there to help him. The five riders chasing him were really well organized and worked well to catch him."
In the end, the 19-year old cyclist rode to a 5th-place finish on a course that favoured several hill climbs. Looking barely spent after a challenging race, he felt that he had done everything he could with what he had.
"I felt good," said deVos. "I didn’t choose the easiest of tactics but I went for it. I tried to be aggressive right out of the start. I felt that if I sat back, it would be hard to make the splits."
Kyle Buckosky (Surrey) finished 11th, Joel Taylor (Victoria), Jordan Duncan (Comox) was 23rd and Trevor Pearson (Delta) withdrew.
It was also a tough day of competition for Team BC fencers as all four competitors failed to make it into the medal rounds. In the men’s individual epee event, Isaac Velestuk (Tsawwassen) took on Ontario’s Joseph Wright. After one round, Wright defeated Velestuk, earning 15 hits to the BC fencer’s 10. William Wang (Surrey) defeated his first opponent 15-9. He was unable to repeat the feat in his second match-up, losing the assault 11-15 to Quebec’s Clément Féménias-Métivet.
In the women’s individual foil event, Sofya Romashina (Richmond) lost to Manitoba’s Jessie Pollett (MB) in the first round while Wojoo Kwon (Surrey) fell to Alberta’s Jerrica Gu in her second assault.
Team competition for all fencers begins tomorrow. Team BC will be looking to find the the momentum of the first two days and come back strong.
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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