With sixteen teams in attendance, the BC Cup in Richmond is a big step for the small-town speed skaters of Williams Lake.
The provincial competition took place on the weekend of Nov. 23 and 24, inviting qualifying speed skaters from across B.C. to compete in short track. Of the three Williams Lake Speed Skating Association Bullets present, this was Logan Kelly-Jalbert (nine) and Preston Sigsworth’s (17) first time competing at the BC Cup, and Kayden Ford-Jalbert's (17) fourth time.
“It takes a lot of work and dedication,” wrote the team’s coach Nancy Jalbert in a message to the Tribune. “Small clubs like ours have half the ice time practice each week that most bigger clubs do, so these skaters just qualifying to me is a big deal.”
The proud coach told the Tribune Sigsworth placed 24th overall, and Kelly-Jalbert placed 11th out of 20 in his category, two great achievements for first time competitors. Ford-Jalbert was unable to race on the second day due to an injury from the first day, and while he was upset over sitting out, his coach said, “self-care is more important.”
Sigsworth and Ford-Jalbert also attended an academy on Friday, Nov. 22 where they learned about racing tactics, exercises, team building and leadership skills.
The three skaters are training now for their next big competition, the BC Championships, taking place in Prince George in March.
