Qualification 2 and Speeeeeeeed!
What another great day for Team Canada!
It was another hot day here in Imst. With the second qualifier and speed qualifications for all categories, it was also a looooong day! We were at the wall from 8:00am until after 8:00pm. Phew! Our early climbers enjoyed the morning coolness, while poor Robert Stewart-Patterson who climbed near the end of the largest category (Youth A Boys) climbed in the heat of the day. Despite the heat, he still pulled off a great climb, sticking a move that spit the majority of the category off.
Coach Sean forerunning Junior Boys Qualifier #2
After another great round of qualifiers, we have four Canadians moving forward to the semi-final round. Congratulations to Alannah Yip (Junior Girls), Elan Jonas-McRae (Youth A Boys), Marc Eveleigh (Youth A Boys) and Miles Adamson (Junior Boys)! I also want to congratulate every other team member who competed this year. I felt that everyone climbed extremely well and made Canada look good!
Alannah Yip climbing her way into 16th place!
Marc Eveleigh pushing hard for a well deserved 25th place finish
Elan Jonas-McRae placing an impressive 13th place despite being unable to see during half of his route
Miles Adamson squeezing hard for a 23rd place into semis
I especially want to congratulate those climbers whose first year it was: Becca Frangos, Amy Sutley, and Caitlin Wu of Youth B Girls; Navy Gale, Andrew Funk and Matt Hendsbee of Youth B Boys, as well as Alyssa Webber of Youth A Girls and Sean Beaudoin of Junior Boys. Worlds is a massive first experience, and you all climbed extremely well! It was great to see the wide eyes, the smiles and the energy!
Sean Beaudoin givin' the wall a back scratcher
Finally, I would like to congratulate all those athletes who are aging out this year after multiple years of participating in the Youth World Cups. Arianne Forbes and Ayesha Khan of Junior Girls and Eric Sethna of Junior Boys. You’ve all grown so much from being those wide-eyed little gaffers in Youth B!
Arianne Forbes climbing her final competition route as a youth climber
Ayesha Khan looking solid and fighting till the last move
Eric Sethna looking good!
Speed is always a fun experience for the Canadian Team. We do not have a separate speed team, so our difficulty competitors are given the option to compete. In years past, we have had athletes dressed in capes and wearing mustaches. Yet this year, Canada was told to act a little more seriously due to the possibility of climbing being incorporated into the 2020 Olympics. Therefore, we resorted to some face paint and sent the athletes on their way. The most memorable moment was little Becca Frangos pushing hard to finish the route and falling off after being unable to reach the buzzer. She may have not gotten a time, but she sure had the loudest cheering squad!
Robert Stewart-Patterson speeding up during qualifications; fastest Canadian time!
Elan trying hard!
Jarred and Ryder duking it out for Team Canada
Congrats Canada. Looking forward to some fun spectating tomorrow and cheering on our four semi-finalists! Semifinals start at 10:00am in Austria! Tune in and check out the IFSC website for results.
August 30th, 2011 at 1:32 am
Thanks so much to you, Vikki – for motivating, recording, and reporting the whole experience for us back here in Canada.