CANMORE – A group of 16 young Canadian biathletes with big stage potential have been handpicked to compete at a major international competition.
Biathlon Canada announced its two teams for the World Youth Junior Championships March 4-12 in Shchuchinsk, Kazakhstan, which will be made up of many biathletes training in Canmore.
The youth team (ages 17-18) includes Anna Marino, Benjamin Brousseau, Alexandra Hulshof, Moira Green, Desiree Paradis, Jean-Nic de Broeck, Daniel Gilfillan, and Xavier Gilbert.
On the Junior team (ages 19-21) are Jenna Sherrington, Zachary Connelly, Anna Perry, Ema Chlepkova, Quinn Morgan, Romeo Champagne, Vincent Girard, and Gavin Johnston.
Both teams are being led by former national team head coach Matthias Ahrens. He said the Canadians show promise, albeit, are young at this stage for international experience. However, he’s not ruling out some big performances in the team relays, with a couple of notable biathletes to keep an eye on.
“I would say for individual podiums, the European competition is tough, but as a team within the relays there could be some really good performances,” said Ahrens, who is head coach at Biathlon Alberta Training Centre. “It’s a dream goal getting to the podium, of course, but that would be really tough to achieve.”
The two strongest biathletes Canada is sending to Kazakhstan are Sherrington and Connelly. Each have world cup experience, though, and have raced mostly on the feeder circuit, the IBU Cup this season. Sherrington’s best results on the IBU Cup was 31st in the mass start, and Connelly has had a couple top 30s in sprint.
Higher results in the junior category aren’t out of the question for the biathletes, said Ahrens.
“I would say keep an eye on Jenna Sherrington and Zach Connelly, that they could achieve some good top-30 results on the junior side,” said Ahrens.
Over the next two Olympic cycles, Biathlon Canada is trending toward developing younger athletes for the national team. Ahrens hopes the experience at a world-class international event puts the junior and youth team on a pathway to continue forward in the sport.
Tyson Wellock, Biathlon Canada’s director of development and high performance, said the organization is looking forward to the performances in Shchuchinsk.
“This is an exciting time where athletes throughout our sport in Canada have an amazing opportunity to compete at the highest levels, challenge themselves and wear the Maple Leaf with pride,” said Wellock, in a media release. “We are very proud of and thankful to all of the athletes, coaches and support staff who work so hard to make it possible for Canada’s Biathlon Teams to compete and perform on the world’s stage.”
