Lethbridge speed skaters proved they are fast
Lethbridge speed skaters participated in the RU Fast short track meet at the Olympic Oval in Calgary recently . Younger skaters participated on the south ice during the weekend, competing in 200-meter, 300-meter, 400-meter, and 800-meter races. In Division Three, Theo Hazendonk set several personal bests, earning a bronze medal for his performance. In the same division, Wyatt Scratch finished fifth. In Division Four, Caelyn Wolfe skated well, also finishing fifth among girls. Rachel Peake earned a gold medal for her stellar performance during the weekend; she won every race in which she participated in Division Five. Lethbridge was represented by two skaters in Division Six.
Norah Peake finished fourth among girls in the division, while Helene Forsyth finished right behind her in fifth place. Lethbridge also had several skaters in Division Nine. Henry Adema narrowly beat out his brother Reid Adema for first place in the division. Both boys earned podium finishes for the event. Emily Peake also made it to the podium, finishing as the third fastest girl in the division. For many of the skaters, this was their first big speed skating meet, and they look forward to building upon their times in future events.
RU Fast was also a qualifying event for Youth-aged skaters. These skaters competed in 400-meter, 800-meter, 1000-meter, and 1500-meter races during the weekend. Zosia Adelman finished third overall and second amongst Youth 13 girls. She set several personal bests at the event and qualified to be a member of Team Alberta competing at the Canadian Youth Short Track Speed Skating Championships that will be held in Medicine Hat later in March. Claire Peake finished sixth among girls in the Youth 12 Division. Her performance also earned her a position on Team Alberta.
Lethbridge also had one skater competing in the Junior Division.
Gavin Ogilvie competed in 500-meter, 1000-meter, and 1500-meter events. Despite being disqualified from the 1500-meter race, Gavin earned a silver medal at the event. He also won the Inaugural Debbie Fisher Open 500-meter Race to commemorate the contributions of the late coach to speed skating in Alberta, with a new personal best time of 44.5 seconds.