CANMORE – In the single mixed relay at the Canmore biathlon, Canada’s two-person team got caught in a peculiar spot of being the hunters and hunted.
Halfway through the end-all race of local IBU Cup, where a woman and a man from each country compete in two legs each, Canada’s Shilo Rousseau and Tobias Quinn were in 11th and fighting off being lapped by the powerhouse Norwegian duo on Saturday afternoon (March 4) at the Canmore Nordic Centre.
At that point, Norway had already lapped out three countries and was cruising along with precision shooting and fast skiing. The Canadians, on the other hand, were struggling and could smell the Norwegians close behind while they fought from the back of the pack.
A condensed race and fatigue – the result of rescheduling due to frigid weather – will do that.
“It was a tough start,” said Quinn, 24. “I had a little bit of trouble on the range off the gun. It’s been a long week, everybody is pretty tired [and] it’s hard to stay focused.”
At the local IBU Cup, which was a retirement bow for Quinn and a statement to Canada’s top biathlon scene of Rousseau’s arrival, the duo’s paths turned in different directions that day, but each were eager to end things with a bang.
In his final race, Quinn managed to keep a buffer zone and hold off the first-place team during his final leg. And by the time he tagged Rousseau for the last stretch, Norway’s pace slowed, and the top Canadian woman had a new goal in mind.
About 30 seconds ahead was Poland’s Wiktoria Celczynska in 10th and Rousseau was “on a mission on my last leg to get her.”
“Coming into today, I had a lot of fatigue in the legs, but was trying to stay positive,” said Rousseau, 22. “We stayed in the game and still had a race to the line with Poland.”
The leftover reserves of Rousseau proved to be the difference for 10th spot as Celczynska was running on fumes. Canada made up more than 30 seconds and finished six seconds ahead of Poland.
“I think we did a good job of recovering and hanging in there and putting on a pretty strong performance,” said Quinn, of Thunder Bay, Ont.
He previously competed in the IBU Cup two seasons ago before making the decision to return for the Canmore biathlon.
“It was really good to have one last good performance on home soil and send it off with a bang instead of a disappointment, like last time,” he said.
Rousseau, from Ottawa, held her own at the Canmore biathlon and finished inside the top-30 in each of her races. The top biathletes of the IBU Cup are destined to be promoted to the top circuit world cup and as Biathlon Canada transitions to a younger core, Rousseau has made a case for herself.
"Shilo has proven she is one of the top female biathletes in the country. However, she will need to show up to trial races next November and earn her spot on the world cup team," said IBU Cup head coach Roddy Ward, in an email.
Last month, Rousseau won two gold and one silver medal at world university Games (FISU) in Lake Placid, which were the first medals ever won at FISU by a Canadian biathlete.
"Add this past week's IBU Cup results and Shilo has had just an incredible, if not historic, season," said Ward. "Shilo has worked so hard for many years it's so great to see her having this success."
Like many of the Canadians racing at the local event, Rousseau had personal best performances in Canmore, including in the pursuit, where she narrowly missed the top-10 and finished 11th.
“In the pursuit, I actually shot 20-for-20 for the first time in my career, so I definitely put together some solid performances that I really feel represent all the hard work I’ve put into the sport,” Rousseau said. “It’s nice to feel like you’re able to show the best of your abilities.”
More than 100 biathletes competed in the IBU Cup season-ending races in Canmore.
Led by Emilie Aagheim Kalkenberg’s four golds and one silver, Norway put on a medal clinic and reeled in 18 medals (10 gold, five silver, three bronze).
Adam Runnalls was Canada’s top man, placing in the top-20 in each of his four races, including ninth in the 10-km sprint.
