By Lisa Skubovius
Contributor
Matching the shine of her skate blades, Emma Nieuwesteeg of the Fernie Skating Club was delighted to bring home a silver medal from the Skate Canada B.C.-Yukon Sectional Championships.
“It was fun doing it,” the 12-year-old skater said of the early November competition which was held in Richmond. “I’m relieved it’s over but it was fun.”
Less than two points separated Emma from the first-place finisher in the Juvenile event, but her total score of 30.64 is likely enough to secure her a chance to shine again at the B.C. Winter Games.
On the same weekend, another Fernie skater, Jodi Stemberger, competed at the Skate Canada Alberta-Nunavit-Northwest Territories Sectional Championships in Edmonton, along with Abby-Anne Hughes, a resident of Sparwood.
Stemberger and Hughes are both associate members of the Fernie Skating Club who choose to compete in the Alberta-based section because of its closer proximity. Stemberger placed fourteenth in a field of 33 skaters in the Pre-Novice category, and Hughes was tenth out of 33 in the Juvenile division.
All three skaters were pleased with their performances after months of preparation. Unfortunately, Gabrielle Runzer who was set to compete at the BC-Yukon championships had to withdraw due to a concussion suffered in the days just before the event.
Both the Alberta and B.C.-based provincial figure skating competitions were broadcast live over the internet on Ustream.
Skaters from Elkford, Sparwood, and Fernie are currently training hard to prepare for the East Kootenay Invitational competition which will be held November 30 and December 1 in Kimberley.