After 20 years of competitions at the National Cadet Biathlon Championships, no cadet from the territories has ever won a medal. Until last week.
Alicia Norris, 13, of the 2860 Royal Canadian Army Cadet Corps out of Fort Simpson, NWT, not only won a medal on March 3, but then grabbed another two days later.
“It’s her first time at a national biathlon and she performed very well,” said 2nd Lieut. Darren Bartsch, one of the coaches with the Northern Region team. “When she was announced for her first medal, it was almost a feeling of shock.”
Norris first won a bronze in the junior girls 4.5-kilometre mass start race, receiving zero time penalties after shooting 10 for 10 at the range. She then took in a silver in the junior female pursuit race.
For her successes, Norris was the runner-up for the Nikki Keddie Trophy at the event, named after a Canadian Olympic biathlete.
“She’s hoping to one day become an Olympic biathlete,” said public affairs officer Capt. Cheryl Major. “And she’s well on her way.”
Another top finish came in the composite team event, which selects positioning based on the team’s slowest member’s performance. The Northern Region team, which includes Norris and five other biathletes from NWT and Nunavut finished fourth.
“They all shot really well and skied their hearts out,” said Bartsch.
“There’s been a push for a better biathlon program in the North and it certainly shows.”
Contact Tom Patrick at tomp@yukon-news.com