Whonnock Lake was the site of the action for the Maple Ridge 2024 BC Summer Games paddling events, as canoe and kayak competitors raced their crafts around a course in the middle of the lake.
Tessa Nagai, head coach of the Ridge Canoe and Kayak Club, was the head coach for the Zone 3 (Fraser Valley) team, joined by Alex Dmitriev. Six kids on the zone squad were from the RCKC, and another three were from the Fort Canoe Club in Fort Langley. With the speed on her team, Nagai was optimistic about her team's chances as the Games got underway.
"There's medals in our future today (Thursday), and we have potential in the events tomorrow as well," Nagai said.
It didn't take long for her prediction to come true. After two fast laps of the course in the 2000 meter kayak race, Maple Ridge's Samuel Edgerton had won his first gold medal.
"I tried to get a nice start and get ahead, set a good pace, and then went hard at the end," he said.
A friend and rival, Josh Reid of Kamloops, was pushing him, but settled for silver as Edgerton maintained the lead throughout the race.
"It's pretty cool to win in such a big event," said Edgerton.
His RCKC and Zone 3 teammate Xander Mouland had some bad luck, as he clashed paddles with a rival in the race and the tippy little race kayak dumped him in the water. Mouland tried to get back in the race, but had to settle for a seat in a rescue boat.
Nagai said Mouland would have been in medal contention but for the mishap, and the coach was impressed with his team spirit.
"It was sweet 鈥� you could hear him in the safety boat yelling 'Go Samuel!"
Roxy Bodner of the Fort team also won an early gold medal for the Zone 3 team.
The Games were a homecoming for Clara van Meel, coach of the Zone 6 (Vancouver Island-Central Coast) team. She was with the Ridge Canoe and Kayak Club, and went to four national championships and one Canada Summer Games alongside Nagai and Olympian Brian Malfesi 鈥� now Nagai's husband.
Van Meel has moved to Nanaimo, started a growing paddle club there, and brought three athletes to the Games.
The onetime RCKC paddler said she ran a gauntlet of hugs going up and down the pier the first time.
"They welcomed me back with open arms," said the coach.
"The whole canoe and kayak community in B.C. is a really great community."
The 2024 BC Summer Games are being held between Wednesday and Sunday, July 17 to 21, in Maple Ridge. This is the third time in the Games history that Maple Ridge has been the host. This week, an estimated 2,400 athletes (average age is 14 to 15), plus some 500 coaches and officials are here for the competitions being held at sports venues throughout the community and region.
Stay tuned for coverage of the Games at .
