November 14th, 2018, Charlottetown – P.E.I. short track speed skaters brought home medals and new provincial records from competitions in Quebec and in Nova Scotia over the weekend.
Jenna Larter of Brookfield led six Island skaters in Lévis, Q.C. with a Group 1 silver medal at the second Quebec provincial circuit meet of the season. Larter posted her best times of the season and grabbed second place in both the 500 metre and 1000 metre distances enroute to the overall podium finish. Thomas McQuaid of Charlottetown took home a bronze medal in Group 4, after a second place finish and new personal best (“PB”) time in the 500m distance. McQuaid also took third place in the 1000m distance to help secure the overall bronze.
Andrew Binns of Stratford set a new P.E.I. provincial record for junior men in the 500m distance, with a time of 45.141 seconds, eclipsing the previous record held by Mike Christie since 2003. Binns placed second in the 500m event, helping him to eighth overall in Group 2. Also representing P.E.I. in Lévis were Kyle Connell (10th place, Group 2), William Lyons (15th place, Group 2) and Matt Kozma (15th place, Group 3). Connell posted new PB times in both the 500m and 1000m distances, as did Lyons in the 500m event. The Island skaters joined a total of 123 skaters from Quebec, Ontario and New Brunswick in the competition.
In Halifax, N.S., eleven P.E.I. skaters took to the start line in the Citadel Cup Speed Skating Championships, with six members of the Island team bringing home medals.
Zack O’Meara (Division 5) and Jane Bruce (Division 6) each claimed their second consecutive gold medals for the Island team, after doing the same on home ice in Charlottetown just two weeks earlier. O’Meara overcame a penalty in the 400m distance with wins in the 1500m and 2000m points race, plus a new PB in the 200m event to secure the overall gold. Bruce nabbed second place finishes in her 200m and 400m distances, along with a new PB time in the 600m distance to earn her gold medal.
Addison Bruce (Division 5) and Ben Kirby (Division 8) also duplicated their silver medal performances from two weeks prior. Ava Bradley (Division 10) earned a third silver medal for P.E.I. in her first off-Island competition, while Zyler O’Meara (Division 10) took home a bronze medal in his first off-Island meet.
Carter Bruce was the top Island skater in Halifax, narrowly missing the podium with his fourth-place finish in Division 1. Rob Binns placed sixth in Division 1, after setting a new provincial record for masters men (ages 40+) in the 500m distance.
The Halifax event featured 114 skaters from a dozen clubs across Atlantic Canada and Nunavut.
For full competition results visit www.speedskatepei.com.