June 24, 2019, Charlottetown – Speed Skate PEI announced this week that a pair of young Island short track speed skaters have earned invites to the Canadian Regional Training Centres in Montreal and in Calgary for the upcoming season. Andrew Binns, of Stratford, and Jenna Larter, of Brookfield, snagged their respective invites to the Canadian Regional Training Centre (“CRCE”) in Montreal and to the Olympic Oval program in Calgary after strong competitive campaigns in 2018-19.
Jenna Larter has earned a spot in the Olympic Oval short track speed skating program in Calgary for the 2019-20 season. Photo courtesy of Yi Kay.
Larter recently took home the Nancy White award as P.E.I.’s top female speed skater for a second consecutive year, after a stellar season which included the best 500 metre time ever skated by an Island female short track skater. Binns shared Speed Skate PEI’s top male athlete award in 2018-19, putting his name on the trophy for a third time, while finishing the season ranked 4th in the country among 15-year-old skaters.
Speed Skate PEI Technical Director Sarah Taylor has coached both athletes for the past several seasons and says that Binns and Larter will make the most of their opportunities. “Andrew and Jenna are highly dedicated athletes. They’re committed to their training and have been such positive influences and role models within our team. We’re thrilled to see them take this next step in their respective athletic journeys and excited to see how they continue progressing.”
Andrew Binns has earned an invite to train at the Canadian Regional Training Centre in Montreal for the 2019-20 speed skating season. Photo courtesy of Yi Kay.
Andrew Jack, President of Speed Skate PEI, congratulated Larter and Binns and noted the continued progress for Speed Skate PEI. “Our high performance program has made great strides over the past three years with Sarah’s leadership and the dedication of our athletes. Andrew and Jenna have worked very hard to get to this level and we know that they’ll be the first of many more to follow this path as we continue to build our programs.”
Binns is the first Islander to earn a spot with CRCE and will start training in Montreal on July 2. Larter will commence her training at Calgary’s Olympic Oval in August.
Information on Speed Skate PEI and its programs can be found on the club’s website at www.speedskatepei.com.
