Scott Gow’s meteoric rise up Canada’s biathlon ranks took another giant leap forward as he secured the final spot on Canada’s world cup team during national team trials Tuesday, Nov. 15.
“That’s amazing. I didn’t think that would be the case. I don’t believe you, " Gow said after receiving the unofficial news Tuesday morning at the Canmore Nordic Centre.
The Canmore resident had the top results after two days of biathlon trials Monday and Tuesday, finishing second in the 10 kilometre sprint and fourth in the 15 km sprint.
“I’ve been working hard over the whole summer. I’m surprised enough; this is half-shocking. "
Gow was Team Alberta’s flag bearer at the 2010 Canada Winter Games and finished ninth at the 2010 world junior biathlon championships. The former space camp student will now begin the year on the world cup circuit.
The trials are used to select the starting lineup for Canada’s world cup team. Jean-Phillipe Le Guellec, Brendan Green and Scott Perras were pre-selected for Canada’s first four spots, while Gow, Marc-Andre Bedard and Nathan Smith were all in contention for the final spot on the men’s team.
Gow is in his rookie season on the Canadian national team after a successful year and wasn’t expecting to edge out his older teammates.
“The goal was to make the IBU cup. I really wasn’t expecting this. I thought the world cup would be icing on the cake, " Gow said.
Biathlon head coach Mathias Ahrens said he was happy for Gow, who has been pushing his national teammates.
“It’s always good to see the young bucks push for spots, " Ahrens said.
Last season, Gow trained with Rocky Mountain Racers, however, he made the jump to the national team in spring.
“I think the switch from RMR to the national team made a difference. Being able to train with Scott (Perras) and Nathan (Smith) and Brendan (Green) every day, I was at a higher level. I think that was the highest benefit, " Gow said, whose quick to praise his teammates.
Smith battled a sore back Monday in the 10 km sprint, which affected his shooting. He finished a disappointing eighth after missing four targets, but poured it on Tuesday, obliterating the field by nearly a minute. However, after calculations, it wasn’t enough to secure the final spot.
“Ski-wise I felt pretty good. The last half of the week I’ve had a lot of back pain. Yesterday was really bad and it affected my shooting. Today was manageable, " Smith said.
Smith said even if he was selected, he may have had to waive the choice while he nurses his injuries back to health. There are several chances for racers to move between the world cup and the IBU cup throughout the season, and Smith wants to make sure he’s ready to make the jump when called upon.
“I was really disappointed after (Monday), but had a good race (Tuesday) so I can’t complain, " Smith said. “I made some good improvements. Barring yesterday, I’ve been doing really well in our team trials and races. "
The world cup team flies to Europe on Nov. 24 and has its first world cup race on Dec. 2. Full results are available at www.zone4.com
