It was touch and go for a while, but the Western Canadian Biathlon Championships are going ahead this weekend at the Grey Mountain Biathlon Range this weekend.
The lack of snow had organizers worried and they almost cancelled the event two weeks ago. But a crew worked hard to upgrade the trail so the race can go on.
Competitors from Alberta, BC and Yukon will compete in two races on Saturday and Sunday. Zeroing in begins at 10 a.m. with the races starting at 11 a.m. on both days.
Biathlon Yukon is hosting the event.
Curling
The Yukon Curling Association is hosting the Territorial Men’s Championships on the weekend at the Whitehorse Curling Club.
A pair of Yukon teams will compete against two teams from the Northwest Territories in a double round-robin format for the right to represent the territories at the Tim Horton’s Brier in Regina, Saskatchewan, March 11-19.
For Yukon, Chad Cowan’s rink will consist of Cowan, as skip, Wade Scoffin as third, James Bucyk as second and Ross Milward will be the lead.
The Pat Paslawski rink is the second Yukon team, with Paslawski as skip, George Hilderman and Rick Laberge as third and second respectively. Kelly Elby will be lead.
Action is set to begin this morning and continue through to Sunday.
Figure skating
Kevin Caron, Arctic Edge Skating Club’s lone male skater, has been skating to success this season.
In early February Caron finished 11th at the BMO Skate Canada Junior Nationals in Moncton, New Brunswick.
Back in November, he placed third at the BC Yukon Sectional Championships and then came in fifth at the BMO Financial Group Skate Canada Western Challenge in December.
Skating at the recent junior nationals was a valuable experience for Caron. “He skated a tremendous short program; it was possibly the best skate of the season for Kevin,” said his mother, Maureen.
Missing his triple loop caused Caron to drop to his 11th place standing.
For the rest of the year, Caron’s goal is to accomplish those triple jumps. He has been training six days a week and periodically travels to Vancouver to work with coach Karen Magnussen and choreographer Mitch Miller.
Soccer
The Yukon Selects Women’s team will play their first tournament this weekend at the Canada Games Centre.
They will play against the Arctic Winter Games teams. Game times are at 6 p.m. on Friday and 2, 4 and 6 p.m. on Saturday. The finals get underway at 10 a.m. on Sunday.
Under-16 (Tuesday)
Pristine Autocare 8
Dandelion Dental 6
Tony Nguyen and Scott Longman each netted a pair, with Courtney Grant, Travis O’Neill, Kyle Levia and Ester Worthington adding their singles for the winning side. Dandelion’s Josh Hanrath performed a hat trick while Shayla Malchow, Savanah Marks, and Steven Dynes rounded out the score.
Alcan Adjusters 9
Yukon Electric 2
Sam Kumar led his team to victory with his five goals. Shea Hierlihy, Kelsey McHugh, Cody Reaume, Daniel Staley and Erin Linklater each scored. Kathleen Hare and Alden Smyth scored for the losing side.
Under-13 (Tuesday)
Audette Construction 8
Pine Plumbing and Heating 6
Tyler Audette led the charge with his four goals for the construction gang. David Ratcliff added his hat trick while Lelainia Harvey scored once. Madison Pearson found the back of the net three times for Pine Plumbing. Ian Wintemute, Jules Lamerton-McCullough and Lindsay Webster scored single markers.
Intersport 10
Klondike Copier 5
For Intersport, Brett Hills popped in four markers, Scott McWinnie and Ryan Lane each added a pair while Shannon Thompson and Dakota Couch each kicked in a goal. Ryan Smith netted three goals and Riley Smith scored twice for the losing side.
Medicine Chest Pharmacy 6
Assante Financial 5
Caleb Kelly kicked in a trio for the pharmacy crew. Helen Hedstrom-Langford, Brett Ens and Stephanie Pike added to the score. Assante’s Janelle Greer led the team’s offence with three goals, while Ale Adamek-Dickson and Tayo Adamek-Dickson each booted in one.
AON 9
East West 7
Derek Wilson was a scoring machine with his four AON goals. Jasper Martin provided another pair. Travis Olynyk scored four times for the losing side, while Nick Gillen had two goals and Tyson Baxter added a single marker.
EBA Engineering 6
Quarton & Sutherland 2
Scoring for EBA was Jack Lanigan (2), Erica Trimble (2), Blaine Huirley (1) and Rob Borud (1). Courtney Lane scored both goals for the losers.
Under-11 (Tuesday)
Kopper King 8
Bumper to Bumper 2
Mary Bennett and Owen Langford-Hedstrom each booted in three goals, while Travis Pumphrey and Ryan Chippett both had singles. Toni Lafferty and Kurtis Hills scored for Bumper to Bumper.
Snap on Tools 7
Remax 1
Belgie Nunez Zunign snapped in a hat trick, while Logan Frasher added two more. Clay Limacher and Nika Young each netted one. Jordan Lindsey was the lone scorer for Remax.
Kiwanis 4
CIBC 2
Kiwanis’ Felix Bouchard and Nicole Bendera equally shared the scoring. Ryan Burke and Charlie Kedziora scored for the bank gang.
Co-ed (Wednesday)
Yukon Brewing 8
Mic Mac Toyota 6
Bob Dick, Simon Langlois and Michelle Boleen each brewed up a pair of goals for the barley team. Nathan Bingham and Rod Savoie added their single markers. Charlie McLeod, Andrew Nielson and Simon Pulido each scored twice for the losers.
Hockey
Firth Rangers 6
Medicine Chest 2
Brian Boorse and Phil Bastien both slapped in a pair, with Rob McDonald and Brian Gudmundson each scoring once. Kevin Neufeld and Jordan Borgord scored for the Medicine Chest.
Klondyke Dental Molars 3
Yukon Inn 2
Lester Balsillie, Larry Warner and Paul Sahagian took a bite out of Yukon Inn’s defense, while Brian McWatters and Glen Heinbigner scored for losing side.