Six local cross-country skiers are headed to Banff and Canmore this weekend for the Alberta Winter Games.
Abby, Max and Sam Elgert; Noah Day; Anna MacIsaac-Jones and Carter Waschuk-Palmer will all be part of the Zone 5 (Black Gold/Yellowhead) team, along with coaches Jennifer Jones and Colleen Elgert.
All six skiers will take part in both skate/sprint and classic races in their respective age divisions. Abby is the youngest of the local competitors, racing in the mini-midget division (ages 11–12), while Max is the oldest, in the juvenile division (ages 15–16). The others all fall into the midget age category (ages 13–14).
The six skiers will also participate in the relay event: Sam Elgert, Day and Waschuk-Palmer as part of the official Zone 5 team; the other local skiers will be placed on teams with other competitors from their age brackets.
Both Elgert brothers have their sights set on the top of the podium for the Winter Games. Sam won gold in the classic plus two silvers at his last Winter Games, while Max won three silvers.
“I’d like to improve on that,” Max said.
MacIsaac-Jones said her goals are to “just race hard and try my best.”
“I just want to finish the race OK,” said Waschuk-Palmer, who will be skiing in his first major competitive race.
“I’d like to stay in front of him,” teased Day.
The cross-country skiing events will be held at the Canmore Nordic Centre, where all six local athletes have skied before.
“It’s a community that’s very geared towards cross-country skiing, so they’ll be set up for it,” Jones commented.
