Local favourites Aidan Millar and Matthew Strum will lead the way for Canada at the World Junior Biathlon Championships in Cheile Gradistei, Romania on Jan. 26, 2016 following a competitive week of trials races at the Canmore Nordic Centre.
Although the team was not finalized by the Outlook’s press time, unofficially, Strum and Millar will be joined by Pearce Hanna and Alexandre Dupuis. Hanna pre-qualified for the world juniors on the strength of a blistering IBU Cup trial race in November. Leilani Tam Von Burg will lead the Canadian women – she was also pre-selected thanks to a strong IBU Cup trials race – joined by Caitlin Campbell, Kendall Chong and Ashley Runnells.
“It’s been a goal of mine all year. I’m hoping for a top-10 once I’m there,” Millar said.
This will be the third trip to world junior championships for Millar, who is considered one of Canada’s top prospects in the sport. His best result was an eighth-place finish last season in the sprint, and he was part of the team’s second-place relay.
He missed more than a month’s worth of training after suffering a concussion over the summer thanks to a road bike accident. It was his second concussion, but it didn’t appear to affect his performance.
“I missed a month or so, but that’s OK. It seems to be working now,” Millar said. “After last year, it’s something you get used to, I guess. It’s not something you really want, but I knew it was possible.”
Millar won Sunday’s 12.5-kilometre pursuit in 35:13, shooting 16/20. Strum finished second, followed by Biathlon Alberta Training Centre (BATC) teammate Dupuis.
“I was pretty disappointed with my race Saturday. I didn’t shoot so well, so my goal today was to go out and attack and pull as much time back as I could on the first lap. I felt strong on my skis, so that helped,” Millar said.
Strum was victorious in Saturday’s sprint race, where he shot extremely well.
“I hit 9/10 and I skied like a banshee, so that helped a lot,” Strum said. “This year I’ve improved my shooting time, and how quickly I can hit 5/5, and it’s showing in the race.”
This will be his third trip to world junior championships as well, and he’d love to record a top 25 finish. He said the BATC team is very competitive right now, and that’s making everyone faster.
“The competition with training and racing is really helpful. It makes sure we perform to the best of our abilities.”
P.E.I’s Caitlin Campbell won the junior women’s pursuit. The younger sister of national team member Carsen Campbell finished in 37:49. Kendall Chong was second and Charlotte Hamel took third place.
Megan Bankes took first place in the youth women category in the pursuit. She tore up the trail at blistering speed to take the top spot on the podium. Emily Dickson finished second, while Nadia Moser was third. Zac Bolduc, Lucas Boudrea and Leo Grandbois finished 1, 2, 3 for Canada.
The weekend was strong for Canmore Nordic racers as well. On Saturday, the team swept the senior girls division, as Megan Orvig won with a six second advantage over Claire Hoilett. Emma Paczkowski finished third. Foothills Nordic was strong in the senior boys category, as Rory Gilliland won the senior boys race, followed by Christian Pazdan. Sean Harrop was third.
