Led by middle distance runner Tyler Smith, the University of Victoria Vikes track team has their eyes on some medals at this weekend鈥檚 U Sports national track and field championships in Windsor, Ont.
Smith, a senior from Wetaskiwin, Alta., will compete in four events, including the 600 and 1,000-metre races in which he won gold at the recent conference championships.
Smith will be joined by eight teammates in Windsor. Thomas Oxland and Timothy Longley will compete in the 1,000 metres. Oxland is ranked third in the country in the distance, while Longley is fourth.
Also representing UVic will be Max Serviss and Vlad Lyesin. Serviss will compete in the 4x800-metre relay, while Lyesin will run in the 4x400-metre relay.
On the women鈥檚 side, Alyssa Mousseau leads the way for the Vikes. She will compete in the 600 metres, a distance she took silver in at the conference finals.
Chloe Hewitt, Caroline Harrell and Vanessa Sjoberg will all join Mousseau in both the 4x400 and 4x800-metre relays. The Vikes relay teams are peaking at the right time as they claimed gold in the 4x800 and just missed the podium with a fourth-place finish in the 4x400 at the conference championships.
The national meet runs today through Saturday.
Sidney teen at home on Crashed Ice
Skyler Diamond-Burchuk hopes to ice her competition in Edmonton this weekend.
Diamond-Burchuk, who hails from Sidney, is the top-ranked Canadian junior heading into this weekend鈥檚 Red Bull Crashed Ice event in the Edmonton river valley. At this international event, known as the 鈥渇astest sport on skates,鈥� Diamond-Burchuk will go up against the best Europe has to offer in the junior division.
The event sees athletes tackle a man-made ice course filled with spectacular jumps, hairpin turns and bumpers. The Edmonton stop is the fourth-and-final event on the Red Bull Crashed Ice circuit.
Judo club shines at Pacific International
It was a medal haul for the Victoria Judo Club at last weekend鈥檚 Pacific International Judo Tournament at the Richmond Olympic Oval.
The Victoria club brought home eight medals from the event, which included teams from sa国际传媒, Japan, the U.S. and Germany.
Tristan Alexander led the way for the Victoria contingent, winning gold in the men鈥檚 U-21 plus-100kg event and silver in the senior plus-100kg division.
Jackson Minnick also brought home two medals, earning silver in the men鈥檚 U-21 90kg class and bronze in the senior 90kg event.
Other medal winners were Nyota Morisho (gold, U-14 women 57kg), Finn Schroeder-Krause (bronze, U-18 men 66kg), Brennan Jolley (silver, U-21 73kg) and Tiffany Coolican (silver, U-21 women 57kg).
Next up for the Victoria Judo Club members is this weekend鈥檚 Edmonton International Judo Championships.
Sister act tough to beat on the mat
The Shew sisters of Saanich are peaking on the wrestling mat at the right time.
Fourteen-year-old Zena Shew, and sister Kiana, 17, both brought home medals from last weekend鈥檚 sa国际传媒 High School Wrestling Championships in Port Alberni and now they鈥檙e switching their focus to a national audience.
Zena won gold in Alberni in the girls鈥� 43kg class, defending her title from a year ago. Kiana made it to the gold-medal match in the 47kg division but narrowly lost a 4-2 decision.
Zena and Kiana represented South Island Distance Education School where they are in Grade 9 and 11, respectively.
