Young guns go off on 09 Beach Tour
When the OVA created the Youth Open division by combining the U18, U21, and U24 categories into one, there was a lot of concern that 17 and 18 year olds couldn’t compete with the best 24 year olds in the province. After just one event this summer the youngsters have proved not only can they compete, they can win.
The Female Youth Open Tier 1 was arguably the toughest division this past weekend. 14 out of the 24 athletes have a top 10 finish at the ‘08 Nationals on their resumes, 7 participants medaled. The Finals were a flashback to the ‘08 U18 Nationals; all 4 competitors had been on the ‘08 podium. Silver Medalist Caleigh Whitaker teamed with Bronze Medalist Kaitlyn Krizmanich to defeat the Gold Medal Winners Victoria Altomare and Melissa Humana‐Paredes.
All tiers of the Female Youth Open offered competitive games throughout the day. Tier 2 was the only division where an athlete over the age of 20 medaled. Annabelle Pellerin and Sasha Kosanov defeated Kris Dowling and Jolande Amoraall. In tier 3 Lucy Mclay and Nicole Schoonderwoerd defeated Christina Grail and Krystyna Ng. All 4 tier 3 finalists were 18 years old or younger.
On the Boys side, ¾ of the finalists were members of the Crush U17 team that won a bronze medal at the 2009 Indoor Provincials. Michael Denton and Giogrio Triberio teamed up while Garrett May partnered with Interclub U18 member and 2009 Indoor Provincial All-Star Will Sidgwick. Sidgwick and May proved too much for Denton and Triberio as they won 2 straight.
Tier 2 followed the same pattern as U18 athletes Dominic Kucharski and Russel Porta defeated U17 Alex Lewicki and Mitch Berman in the Gold Medal Final.
With only one event in the books for the 2009 Beach Tour there are still some unknowns, but this weekend proved that the Youth Open division has created a competitive environment for all athletes regardless of age.
