Story written by Jennifer Learmonth, special to The Laker News
WAVERLEY: Cheema Aquatic Club athletes delivered an impressive performance on the water this weekend, bringing home 16 gold, 17 silver and 17 bronze medals while finishing third overall in team points at Atlantic championships/national qualifying on Lake Banook.
Among the weekend’s many highlights was a thrilling C15 final, where Cheema narrowly missed gold to Maskwa by just 0.200 seconds in a dramatic finish.
Elizabeth Fanok had an outstanding Cheema debut, collecting five individual gold medals in kayak competition.
Katie Cooper also had a remarkable weekend, capturing five gold medals across individual and crew events.
In canoe competition, Ryerson Eisener powered his way to gold in the 6000m, while Erik Nilsson earned four medals over the course of the weekend.
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Cheema’s PaddleALL athletes also turned in strong performances, collecting medals in both individual and crew events.
Other standout performances included:
Elle MacKenzie – with four gold and two bronze medals; Chloe Pike, who collected three gold, one silver and one bronze; Megan McFeters, with three gold and three bronze; and Evelyn Fennell, who earned two gold, two silver and two bronze medals.
The medal haul extended across all three categories, with athletes recording strong results in canoe, kayak and PaddleALL events.
While the medals tell part of the story, the weekend also showcased the strength of the Cheema team.
Teammates lined the docks to cheer on their paddlers, celebrating each finish and supporting one another throughout the competition.
With 50 medals in total and a third-place finish in team points, Cheema athletes turned in a weekend filled with strong performances, close races and plenty of reasons to celebrate.
(This story was done up with information that was provided to The Laker News. Info was correct at time of posting.)
