Weekend Roundup: Podium breakthroughs & an Olympic spot earned for Team Canada
Team Canada athletes enjoyed a breakout weekend on the international stage.
History was made at the Artistic Gymnastics World Championships, World Cup rookies made their names known at the Short Track Speed Skating World Cup in Calgary, and an Olympic spot was earned in shooting.
Here are the details:
Artistic Gymnastics
Read: Ana Padurariu wins world championship silver on beam
Read: Shallon Olsen vaults to silver at artistic gymnastics world championships
Team Canada’s Ana Padurariu performs the balance beam to win a silver medal on the second and last day of the apparatus finals of the Gymnastics World Championships at the Aspire Dome in Doha, Qatar, Saturday, Nov. 3, 2018. (AP Photo/Vadim Ghirda)
Team Canada’s coming home from an exciting weekend at the FIG Artistic Gymnastics World Championships in Doha, Qatar with two silver medals.
Shallon Olsen won silver on the vault during the individual apparatus finals, scoring an average of 14.516 for her two vaults. Ana Padurariu won Team Canada’s second medal when she took silver on beam, finishing with a score of 14.100 points.
Team Canada’s women made history with a best-ever fourth place finish in the team final. The result bodes well for next year’s world championships that will serve as an Olympic qualifier for Tokyo 2020.
Short Track Speed Skating
Read: Team Canada wins two bronze medals on the final day of the short track Calgary World Cup
Read: Sarault and Charles reach the podium in short track World Cup debuts
Team Canada’s Alyson Charles, left, and Holland’s Lara Van Ruijven skate during the women’s 500-metre semifinal competition at the ISU World Cup short track speed skating event in Calgary, Alta., Sunday, Nov. 4, 2018. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh
Team Canada finished strong at the ISU Short Track World Cup in Calgary over the weekend. The women’s 3000m relay team raced to a time of 4:05.267 to finish with a bronze medal. One member of that squad, Alyson Charles, also won bronze in both 500m events. Courtney Lee Sarault took home a silver medal in the 1500m, beaten by Suzanne Schulting of the Netherlands in a photo finish.
Shooting
Rio 2016 Olympian Lynda Kiejko won gold in the women’s 10m air pistol at the 2018 Continental American Championships in Guadalajara. The victory secures Canada an Olympic berth in the event for Tokyo 2020. Kiejko totalled 235.2 points for the victory over American Alexis Lagan.
Ice Hockey
Canada’s National Women’s Team played its lone exhibition game ahead of the 4 Nations Cup and skated away with a 6-0 win over Finland on Sunday evening at the Art Hauser Centre in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan. The 4 Nations Cup begins Tuesday in Saskatoon as Canada plays Sweden, which will be followed by preliminary round matches against the United States (November 7) and Finland (November 9). The medal matches are scheduled for Saturday.
