Sports

Orangeville high school’s ski team performs well at OFSAA

March 7, 2024   ·   0 Comments

By Brian Lockhart

The Orangeville District Secondary School Scarlett Bears ski team competed at the Ontario Federation of School Athletic Associations (OFSAA) Nordic ski meet on Feb. 22-23 and had good results.

The event was held at Lakefield College School in Lakefield.

ODSS sent 22 student-athletes to compete, and they were up against teams from across the province.

OFSAA competition featured junior and senior boys and girls divisions

The juniors raced a 5km course, with seniors competing at a 7km distance in the distance races.

There were also 4 x 900m metre team sprints.

Notable results from ODSS competitors include Ailsa Bogan, who finished second in the Junior Girls High School Division 5km race, with a time of 17:24.8.

Adam Whiting placed 7th in the Senior Boy’s High School Division, with a time of 22:04:7 over 7km.

Tenzen Kipps place 18th in the Senior Boys Open division, covering the 7km, with a time of 21:15.3.

The Senior boy’s team placed 2nd in the 7km distance race and 3rd in the sprint relay.

The Junior girls team placed 6th in the 5km distance race and 8th in the sprint relay.

The Junior boys team placed 15th in the distance race.

ODSS Junior competitor Ailsa Bogan currently in her second year of the sport, was up against over 100 other racers in her division.

“You don’t know the competition because you’ve never raced against them,” Ailsa said. “I was very last starting. It’s a timed start and someone starts every 15 seconds. Starting last, no one could pass me, but I could pass others. You have to go as hard as you can the whole time. I got a time of 17:25 in my race so I knew I did well.”

Ailsa plans to continue training and competing for the rest of her high school career.

Tenzen Kipps competed in the Senior Boys Open division. Competition is divided between the High School division for students who participate only through high school and the Open division for students who train and compete in the sport outside of high school.

Tenzen skis with the Mono Nordic Ski Club.

“I like being out in nature and being able to explore different trails,” Tenzen said of why he likes the sport. “When we go to races we get to go to all these different places. On my high school team, my favourite thing is all the amazing people I meet.”

Tenzen was up against 155 competitors in the Open division from around the province.

“It was a lot of fun, but also really tough,” Tenzen said. “It was 10 degrees, so we were skiing in slush. Snow conditions will change everything in skiing. It was slow compared to when it’s frozen over and kind of icy – that’s when it’s really fast. For me, I’m better in the slower conditions and the slushy conditions because I feel I can power through it because I’ve had so much experience and training.”

Tenzen has been a competitive Nordic skier for eight years.

The ODSS team was fortunate to have some sponsors this year who helped with transportation costs.

Their sponsors include MacLeod Veterinary, the Optimist and Rotary Clubs, Teenage Tutors Inc., Grit Inc., and Stephanie Groves.


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