Two Sovereign Lake biathletes will be joining Team BC at the 2019 Canada Winter Games in Red Deer.
Danica Ariano and Ethan Algra made the cut at the selection trials, held in Canmore, Alta., earlier in December.
Ariano had two solid races at the trials, skiing up a category in the 7.5 kilometre sprint and the 12.5 km individual. She knocked down nine of 10 targets in the first race, and 16 of 20 in the second. She looked strong skiing the hilly course, crossing the line in second place, just one second behind the leader on Day 1, and taking second on Day 2 as well, finishing the trials as the top B.C. racer in her category.
RELATED: Ariano gains bronze at biathlon nationals
Algra, who was racing up two categories, was a bit disappointed with his shooting the first day, hitting six of 10 targets. Having to ski four penalty loops, he pushed hard on the 10 km course to make up time on his ski. His focus paid off, as he managed to grab third place out of the B.C. athletes, and sixth overall, putting himself in contention going into Day 2 of racing.
In the 15 km individual, Algra had a solid shoot, hitting 80 per cent. He skied well against the older skiers, finishing fourth in the race, second for the B.C. competitors, and taking the final spot on the CWG Team BC. The two biathletes head to Red Deer, Feb. 14, with their first day of competition beginning on Feb. 17.
RELATED: Sovereign Lake hosted annual Biathlon BC training camp
Ariano and Algra were joined by their Sovereign teammates this last weekend at the BC Cup event in Quesnel, where all biathletes found their way onto the podium.
Algra raced to two first place finishes while Ariano grabbed a first and a second. Jasmine Hanry took second in both her sprint and individual race in the Midget category, shooting clean in her second race, while sister Camille Hanry got third in the sprint in the competitive Junior Girls age group. Master biathletes and coaches Bert Mueller and Laurie Dusik took part in their first races of the season, finishing at the top in their respective categories.
roger@vernonmorningstar.com
Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.