Canadian Jr. triathlon champs crowned

Two young Canadians captured national titles in this weekends triathlon as Amelie Kretz, a pre-race favourite to win, and Tyler Mislawchuk, ranked 2nd coming into this weekends race, won the junior women’s and men’s races at the Canadian Championships on Saturday.

Photo: Contributed - Deanne Collinson

Quebec's Amelie Kretz crosses the finish line after winning the Canadian Jr. Women's Triathlon title in Kelowna Saturday.

The races were part of the 30th Annual Kelowna Apple Triathlon.

Kretz, a resident of Blainville, Quebec, is one of the rising young stars in the sport having won recently in Edmoandy, AB and Huatulco, Mexico, clocked a winning time of 61 minutes, 22 seconds over the 750-metre swim, 20-kilometre bike and five kilometre run.

“The bike course was really technical and I had to work hard to catch up,” says Kretz, who finished 6th last year. “The race was really excellent with lots of energy from all the people. I am so happy to win.

Once foot hit pavement, Kretz held off two of the most talented junior triathletes in the country to win the gold. Gabriel Edwards of Sask, who claimed the silver medal with a time of 1:02:37. Karol-Ann Roy of Quebec rounded out the women’s podium in third place at 1:03:53.

All three girls will form a dynamic women’s squad that will represent Canada at the 2012 Junior Triathlon World Championships.

The triathlon future also looks bright for Canada in men’s racing as a group of young Canucks put on a stellar show in Kelowna while vying for the national crown. When the dust finally settled, it was Tyler Mislawchuk of Manitoba coming out on top.

Photo: Contributed

The men's junior title went to Tyler Mislawchuk of Manitoba.

Mislawchuk clocked a gold-medal winning time of 56:11.

“It was a very good race and my team helped me a lot,” says Mislawchuk. “Working with my coach, our strategy was to stay together as a group on the bike, and to move strongly into the run with some spare time. My team worked really hard and it’s because of them that I won today. ”

Mislawchuk was joined on the podium by two Quebec natives Alexis Lepage, who ran to the silver medal with a time of 56:20 and Xavier Grenier-Talavera who skillfully completed his race in a 56:33 time.

The Canadian Championships continue on Sunday with the elite races in Kelowna, while Canada will also field a team in the Team Relay event at the Sprint World Championships in Lausanne.

For more information on Triathlon Canada, visit their website.