Sprinting always seems to require a hefty dose of luck to ski all the way to the finals, and this year the classic sprints at the national championships were no exception. With a strong field in all categories, and icy conditions on the course there were plenty of falls and mishaps throughout the day.
In the Open Women's category, Alana and Megan both qualified for the heats winding up 15th and 17th respectively after being knocked out in the quarterfinals. Sheila also raced, but she had the misfortune of being one of the many skiers to fall on the icy hairpin corner at the far end of the course. Even after losing all her momentum and recovering from an awkward fall, she was only 4 hundredths of a second away from that critical 30th spot and missed qualifying.
Justin and Karl opted to give the sprint day a miss, in order to recover for the final race of the week and to help John and Frank with waxing and testing skis. Their efforts were appreciated, as XC Ottawa athletes had great skis for these sprints. Colin and Matthias both raced in the Junior Men's category. After qualifying in comfortable positions, they were both knocked out in the quarterfinals after they were seeded into some very tough heats. Colin finished the day in 13th position and Matthias wound up in 15th.
The Junior women on the team also raced. Zoe qualified with the 3rd fastest time of the day for the Junior Woman category, and Adele and Danielle also qualified for the heats. Adele, despite her dislike for classic sprints, managed a strong 20th after getting knocked out in her quarterfinal. Zoe and Danielle both made it past the quarterfinal round, and after a hard-fought semi, they wound up in the B-final. Zoe was 12th overall and Danielle finished the day with XC Ottawa's best result, a strong 9th place.
Classic Sprint Photos
Danielle McVicar
Zoe Braul
In the Open Women's category, Alana and Megan both qualified for the heats winding up 15th and 17th respectively after being knocked out in the quarterfinals. Sheila also raced, but she had the misfortune of being one of the many skiers to fall on the icy hairpin corner at the far end of the course. Even after losing all her momentum and recovering from an awkward fall, she was only 4 hundredths of a second away from that critical 30th spot and missed qualifying.
Justin and Karl opted to give the sprint day a miss, in order to recover for the final race of the week and to help John and Frank with waxing and testing skis. Their efforts were appreciated, as XC Ottawa athletes had great skis for these sprints. Colin and Matthias both raced in the Junior Men's category. After qualifying in comfortable positions, they were both knocked out in the quarterfinals after they were seeded into some very tough heats. Colin finished the day in 13th position and Matthias wound up in 15th.
The Junior women on the team also raced. Zoe qualified with the 3rd fastest time of the day for the Junior Woman category, and Adele and Danielle also qualified for the heats. Adele, despite her dislike for classic sprints, managed a strong 20th after getting knocked out in her quarterfinal. Zoe and Danielle both made it past the quarterfinal round, and after a hard-fought semi, they wound up in the B-final. Zoe was 12th overall and Danielle finished the day with XC Ottawa's best result, a strong 9th place.
Classic Sprint Photos
Danielle McVicar
Zoe Braul
Interesting Reading. . .
"OWL Rafting - The Mighty Ottawa River"