Canada Wins Bronze on Final Day – Brings Home 12 Medals
Canada recorded one final medal on the last day of competition at the first-ever Youth Olympic Games. The Canadian rhythmic gymnastics team took bronze in the group all-around competition, while Canadian fans also saw strong performances in canoe-kayak and sailing.
Rhythmic Gymnastics: The team of Katrina Cameron (Mississauga, Ont.), Melodie Omidi (Mississauga, Ont.) and Anjelika and Victoria Reznik (Toronto, Ont.) improved on their fourth-place qualifying position to win bronze – Canada’s last medal at the Youth Olympic Games. “It’s everything we worked for, for many years,” said Omidi. “It’s about our hard work and dedication,” echoed Anjelika Reznik. “It means joy, pride and hard work,” her sister Victoria said. “It means a lot. It makes all our hard work worth it,” concluded Cameron.
Canoe-Kayak: Hayden Daniels (Calgary, Alta.) nearly claimed a medal at Marina Bay Reservoir. Daniels won his quarterfinal matchup then fell short in the semifinal, setting up a head-to-head race for bronze with Anatoli Melnyk (UKR). Trailing late in the race, Daniels made a huge charge, ultimately running out of water and placing fourth. “It would have been nice to beat a sprinter in the end, but they’re so fast in a straight line,” Daniels said.
Sailing: The Youth Olympic regatta came to a successful end for Canadian sailor Sarah Douglas (Toronto, Ont.). Douglas won the final race of the 12-race one-person dinghy competition. The win moved Douglas from 14th to 10th place and is a sure shot of confidence for the 16-year-old. “It felt amazing. I had the biggest smile on my face at the end of the race,” she said. “This result is going to push me forward a lot. I’ve learned a lot from the whole experience.” Teammate Audrey Caron (Val-Morin, Que.) finished the windsurfer competition in 17th place.
Canadian Youth Olympic Team Results: August 25, 2010
Canoe-Kayak
• Hayden Daniels – Men’s C1 Obstacle Slalom – Final – 4th
• Jazmyne Denhollander – Women’s K1 Obstacle Slalom – Quarterfinal – Lost to Pavlina Zasterova (CZE)
Gymnastics-Rhythmic
• Katrina Cameron, Melodie Omidi, Anjelika Reznik, Victoria Reznik – Group All-Around – Final – BRONZE (43.425)
Judo
• Ecaterina Guica (Team Birmingham) – Mixed Team – Round 1 – Lost to Christine Huck (020 – 001). Team lost 5-2 to Team Cairo
Sailing
• Audrey Caron – Girls Windsurfer – Final – Overall: 17th; Race 12: 16th
• Sarah Douglas – One-Person Dinghy – Final – Overall: 10th; Race 12: 1st
