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Windermere girl cracks Team Canada lineup for 2012 Whistler Cup
A Windermere girl is among 18 young skiers (ages 11 to 14) named today (March 28) to Team Canada for the 2012 Whistle Cup.
Alpine Canada Alpin, the national governing body for alpine, para-alpine and ski cross racing in Canada, named Courtney Hoffos of the Windermere Valley Ski Club to the team.
Another Panorama Mountain Village (pictured above) skier named to the nine boy/nine girl team is Keagan Sharp, a Toby Benches resident skiing with Team Panorama Ski Club.
The 2012 Whistler Cup, running April 6 to 8 in Whistler, is an annual event for 11- to 14-year-old alpine skiers, and is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year. And Canada is hoping to win its fifth Nations’ Cup title in six years, with young skiers from 17 countries taking part.
The event features boys and girls’ kombi, super-G, slalom and giant slalom races.
The 18 racers have been selected to represent Canada based on results from the recent K2 Can-Am East event in Mont-Tremblant, Que., and the K2 Can-Am West races in Panorama.
“After being exposed to some of the best racers from the U.S. at the Can-Am, it will be interesting to see whether this year’s Team Canada will be able to find an extra gear to go against some of the best in the world,” said Canada’s national development coach, Jean-François Bélisle on alpinecanada.org. “The Team Canada prep camp will be a great opportunity to develop a good team atmosphere between the athletes and staff but also a chance to prepare and relax for the challenge ahead of us.”
Following the camp, the Canadian team will be divided into boys’ and girls’ Team Canada 1, 2 and 3. Selection for those teams will be based on a combination of K2 Can-Am results and their performances at the Whistler Cup Preparation Camp, which will include time trials in super-G, giant slalom and slalom.
“Some of the best ski nations in the world have confirmed their presence for this year’s Whistler Cup,” Bélisle said. “This is certainly a very exciting opportunity for our team and, for sure, a great challenge. When you ski against the best, it usually brings the best out of you.”
According to Alpine Canada, the countries that will be represented in 2012 are Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Croatia, Japan, Korea, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Macedonia, New Zealand, Norway, Russia, Serbia, Slovenia and Switzerland.
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