Saanich cross-country skier Amelia Wells has made the cut as Canada suits up an experienced group of 24 athletes to represent the nation at the 2023 FIS Nordic Junior/U23 World Ski Championships.
Wells, who graduated from Reynolds Secondary School and the Canadian Sports School, is the first athlete from Vancouver Island to ever qualify for the competition, which takes place from this Friday, Jan. 27 to Feb. 5 at Whistler Olympic Park.
The international event will be welcoming more than 530 athletes from over 38 countries to compete in three different events, ranging from cross-country skiing and Nordic combined to ski jumping.
“This is so amazing,” Strathcona Nordic Ski Club head coach Andrea Stapff, who coached Wells for 11 years, said. “She has worked so very hard; I’m thrilled for her.”
The Strathcona Nordic Ski Club, based out of Mount Washington, is Vancouver Island’s only cross-country ski club, with members hailing from all parts of the Island.
Last week, the nation’s top cross-country skiers competed in three races at the 2023 Nordiq Canada Selection Trials in Prince George, in hopes of representing Canada at the championships. Nordiq Canada selected six women and six men to compete in the Junior World Championships, while six women and six men were selected for the Under-23 events.
“This is a young group with an exiting mix of athletes with international experience and first timers who are loaded with tremendous potential and drive,” said Chris Jeffries, Nordiq Canada’s high-performance director. “This group of athletes represent the future of our sport, and share a common goal of achieving their performance goals at this critical event on the race calendar.”
Gabe Gledhill, a 20-year-old Nordic skier from the Comox Valley who also trained with the Strathcona Nordic Ski Club but is now based in Norway and racing for the British Nordic Ski Team, will also be competing in the 2023 Junior/U23 World Ski Championships.
It will be the first major international event at Whistler Olympic Park since the 2010 winter Olympics.
Each day the races will be live streamed through CBC Sports and CBC Gem.
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