Draft Legal Provincial Champions Crowned

– Elite/U23 & Junior Cup Series wraps up in fine fashion –

August 30, 2016 – Triathlon Ontario, the recognized Provincial Governing Body of Multisport in Ontario, announced the results of its signature race, the Draft Legal Provincial Championships, held this past Saturday. New venue and Age Group Draft Legal wave a hit with both spectators and athletes

This past Saturday Triathlon Ontario hosted its annual Draft Legal Provincial Championships. The event has traditionally been held in Ottawa for the past five years and had been an important race for Elite/U23, Junior and U15 athletes. Triathlon Ontario moved the event to the Welland International Flatwater Centre, a Pan Am Games legacy facility, which provided a more spectator friendly and exciting race course.

Another major change to the event for this year was the addition of an open (no five year age categories) Age Group draft legal wave for both men and women. With the recent changes to World Championships, Nationals and National Qualifying events, where Age Group sprint races are now draft legal, Triathlon Ontario believes draft legal racing for Age Groupers will potentially be a major opportunity for growth in the sport.

Age Group Race Recap
The weather was perfect and the water was warm Saturday morning when the first ever Age Group Draft Legal Provincial Championship race got under way. It was a non-wetsuit swim and the faster swimmers took advantage. A pack of three came out of the water together that consisted of Brad Digweed, Triathlon Ontario President Mike Greenberg and Non-Drafting Sprint Provincial Champion Stevie Blankenship. The bike leg consisted of multiple packs with athletes working together to chase the lead pack. Heading out on the run the top seven men were all within 35 seconds of each other, setting up a 5 km sprint to glory. Nathan Nicholls put the hammer down with the fastest run split to make history and become the first ever, Age Group Draft Legal Provincial Champion by a minute. Followed in second was Blankenship and just 10 seconds later was Fighting Koalas head coach, Mat Reid.

Sarah Hopkins was first out to the water in the women’s race with a 15 second gap on Kara Moddemann. The women came out of the water with multiple gaps so they would need to work hard to catch up and work together on the bike. Moddemann and Kirsty Andrews put in the fastest bike splits that set them up nicely for a lead on the run. Moddemann was able to hold off Andrews and take the win by about 45 seconds. Hopkins came into the finishing chute in third place.

Elite/U23 Recap
Myles Zagar lead out of the water and was able to hold off a hard charging Taylor Forbes on the run to win the Provincial title. Jackson Laundry used a strong bike leg to position himself into a third place finish. This was also the final race in the Cup Series and second place for Forbes solidified his Series win and $500. Laundry’s result put him in second place in the Series ($300), just one point ahead of our adopted Maritimer, Reid Burrows ($200).

Dominka Jamnicky added another provincial title to her awards cabinet by leading wire to wire again. First year U23 athlete Danae Morris took second place while Samantha Klus grabbed third. There was a race within a race for the Series win. Morris’ result was good enough to take the Cup Series and the first place cash prize while Abby Miller finished second and Jamnicky earned third place.

Junior Recap
North American Champ Oliver Blecher and his American training partner Seth Rider opened up a lead on the field out of the water and never looked back. Blecher took the Provincial title, Rider finished second and Jacob Jamnicky ran into himself into third place on the day. In the Junior Cup Series, Dylan Pust edged out Liam Donnelly by six points for first place and got to spare the crowd with the champagne (non-alcoholic of course for the juniors).

Elise Bolger, one of the best junior swim legs in the country, lead out of the water and was strong enough on the bike and the run to take the Provincial title. Madeleine Kennedy, and Cate Skain followed in second and third respectively. In the Series it was Kennedy besting Bolger by just one point, while Skain took third place.

U15 Recap
This year’s race had the largest U15 field in Provincials history, a good sign for the health of the sport’s future. Tristen Jones and Sasha Menegotto lead out of the water. A fast run split sealed the win for Jones and a second place for visiting Quebec athlete Jean-Marc Granderson. Menegotto finished third on the day.

Isabella Mastroianni came out of the water first followed closely by Teagan Shapansky and Emma Young. The lead pack came off the bike together and it was Shapansky running away with the win followed by Young and then Mastroianni.

This was the third of four stops on the Youth Cup Series for 14-15 year old division. The final stop will be at the MultiSport Canada Lakeside KOS, also serving as the inaugural Youth Club Championship.

About Triathlon Ontario
Triathlon Ontario is a non-profit organization that is the recognized Provincial Governing Body for Multisport in the province of Ontario. Our mission is to provide leadership and governance for the development of a safe and fair environment for Multisport in Ontario. Triathlon Ontario oversees the sanctioning of races and clubs and undertakes a number of duties and responsibilities on behalf of athletes at every level, coaches, clubs, officials and race directors to ensure the growth and development of the sport in a fun and safe way. Visit TriathlonOntario.com for the latest triathlon news, events, camps, and clinics.