The weather was ideal for skiing Friday with a high of -11 C and sunny skies. (Derek Cornet/larongeNOW Staff)

By Derek Cornet

young athletes

School Ski Championships returns after two-year break

Mar 17, 2023 | 4:25 PM

The Don Allen Trails north of La Ronge was the location of the 25^th annual School Ski Championships on Friday.

There were 102 skiers who participated, coming from across mostly northern Saskatchewan.

Schools that participated are Chief Moses Ratt School (Sucker River), Churchill Community High School (La Ronge), Gordon Denny Community School (Air Ronge), Bell’s Point Elementary School (Lac La Ronge), Rossignol High School (Ile-a-la Crosse), Sally Ross School (Hall Lake), Minahik Waskahigan High School (Pinehouse Lake) with other athletes from Creighton, Flin Flon and Saskatoon.

“It’s to give an opportunity to new skiers or skiers who have never had an opportunity to race, especially in the North,” organizer and teacher Gabe Andrews said.

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“Northern Sport, Culture and Recreation District helps out big time with this event, so they purchase all the ribbons, banners and food for the event and they show up to volunteer. The School Ski Championships have been around for as long as I can remember. We also combine it with the Sask Cup Race series as well, so it serves two purposes. To attract the racing skiers from the province, but also new skiers.”

The races ranged in length from one kilometer to five km, but there was also the junior relay, open relay and sprints. The event began with a mass start at 11 a.m. and races continued until 1:30 p.m.

The School Ski Championships event is focused on school ski groups, however, the championships is a Sask Cup Race event and it was open to entries from all skiers regardless of age.

“The last time we ran it was in March of 2020 before everything got shutdown. We planned for it last year, but the Omicron [variant] came back at us, so we had to shut things down,” Andrews said.

“All the work you put into an event like this pays off with just giving kids the opportunity to be out there and have fun and skiing and falling and getting back up and finishing. It feels like we are back to normal when it comes to having big events and kids having fun together and seeing their smiles on their faces.”

The weather on Friday was ideal for skiing with sunny skies and a temperature of -11 C.

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derek.cornet@pattisonmedia.com

Twitter: @saskjourno