Nipissing Nordic pushes through Ontario Cup circuit

The Ontario Cup circuit of cross country ski races wrapped up at Hardwood Hills this past weekend, with Nipissing Nordic skiers challenging the front of the pack for position.

The team brought home one medal, a bronze in the junior men’s 15km classic race on Sunday, earned by rookie team member Matt Chalmers, who placed 9th overall among the open men, 1:15 up on teammate Kevin Durkee in 11th. Nipissing recruit Jess Demers led the junior girls 10km classic race for the first lap, before being denied by fellow Ontario Ski Team racer Jenn Jackson for the win.

The team advanced one athlete to the A-finals in Saturday’s skate sprints, with Chalmers posting a qualifying time of 2.56.3 over 1.2km course and moving through the day’s heats to finish 4th. The placing was a bit of an upset in the rankings, with Southern Ontario Training Centre athlete Cam Rayner bumped into 5th on his home course.

On the women’s side, Lynsey Bialkowski advanced through to the B-final and an 8th place finish with close racing in her semi-final heat. Through all of the sprint heats the uphill start of the course gave an advantage to the skier who crested the climb first, with aggressive skiing on the downhill prevailing into the finish, so long as the racers could keep the shiny side of their skis on the snow.

The team now begins its last training taper for the season, with a contingent from the varsity crew preparing for the upcoming National Championships in Whistler British Columbia, running from March 23 to 30.