August Snapshots: A roundup of local athletes’ action

-By Ottawa Sportspage

Local judo national team member wins $5000 bursary

Benjamin Kendrick’s recent achievements in judo have paid off. The Ottawa native was one of 20 athletes who were awarded a $5000 bursary from AthletesCAN and Investors Group. Kendrick earned the award with a gold medal at the 2018 National Championships and a 7th place finish at the 2018 Men’s Pan American Cup in Lima. At the Under-18 level he’s won two Pan Am golds and is an eight-time national champion. Most recently he finished 2nd in the U21, 90 kg category at the European Cup in Prague, Czech Republic. His loss came at the hands of Russia’s Mansur Lorsanov in the gold medal fight.

Gloucester Wolverines swallow tough loss at national invitational

The Gloucester Wolverines U16 boys appeared to have victory in the bag in the quarterfinals of the Canadian National Invitational Tournament, but it was not to be. The team suffered an overtime loss after building a 41-20 halftime lead. The boys breezed through the round robin, finishing first in their pool and inviting hopes of going all the way. While the loss was deflating, team manager David Gauthier hopes it will serve as motivation for next season. 2018 was by no means a failed season for the U16 Wolverines: the boys won the Ontario Division I Provincial Championships at Algonquin College in May.

Wall earns spot at Tokyo Pan Pacific Championships

Eli Wall did what he needed to on the final night of the 2018 Canadian Swimming Trials to secure a spot at the Pan Pacific Championships in Tokyo late in August. The 23-year-old touched the wall in 2 minutes 14 seconds in the 200 m breaststroke at the Kinsmen Sports Centre in Edmonton. Born in Ottawa, Wall trains at the Toronto Swim Club and was named the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) athlete of the week in February after winning both the 100 m and 200 m breaststrokes in OUA record time.

Ottawa Valley golfers take home individual and team silvers

Dylann Armstrong played a steady three rounds at the Thames Valley Golf and Country Club in London at the Ontario Summer Games Golf Competition. The Ottawa-native won silver in the individual girls’ category, thanks in large part to a stellar final-round score of 72 (two over par), which was the best round of the tournament among the girls. In the end she finished just two strokes back of gold medalist Hannah Meloche of Windsor, ON. Meanwhile, members of the Ottawa Valley Golf Association earned silver in the boys’ team category after shooting +84 over the course of the Aug. 3-5 tournament. The six-player team was nothing if not consistent, accumulating a score of 376 in the first round and 379 in rounds two and three. Malcolm Simpson, Mathis Rollin, Ellis Kinnaird, James Newton, Alexander Brisebois and Owen Walsh comprised the silver-medal team.

Dunkerley adds to para-triathlon medal collection

It was a sparkling second half of July for Ottawa’s Jon Dunkerley. The 30-year-old won gold in the men’s visually impaired category alongside his guide James Cook, at a Para-triathlon World Cup event in Magog, Que. Dunkerley completed the sprint distance race in 1:06:19. Two weeks later he found the podium again at the World Para-triathlon Series in Edmonton, placing 3rd with a total time of 1:07:50. His swim – a shade under nine minutes – was the fastest of all his visually impaired competitors. Dunkerley has a long history of success as a para-athlete, having competed in the 2008 and 2012 Paralympic Games. His best individual performance was in Beijing where he finished 7th in the men’s 400 m.

Women’s Canadian team finishes 6th at World Fencing Championships

Canada’s female foil team left the 2018 Senior World Fencing Championships with a 6th place finish on July 25, bowing to the eventual gold-winning Team USA in the quarterfinals 45-9. Ottawa’s Kelleigh Ryan was part of the four-person team along with Shannon Comerford, Alanna Goldie and Eleanor Harvey. The team bounced back from their loss to the US with a win against Russia, the team ranked 2nd coming into the championships. A 31-24 loss to Team Japan closed out their tournament. Ryan was also one of four Canadian women to progress to the individual round-of-64 at the Championships, finishing 42nd overall.

Robertson bumped up to gold after doping DQ

Ottawa Lions athlete Michael Robertson found out he was a gold medalist along with his Canadian 4×400 m teammates after a result from five years ago at the 2013 FISU Summer Universiade in Russia was reversed. The upgraded medal came after a member of the Russian team received a doping infraction, disqualifying his team’s gold-medal finish. Robertson and his team finished the relay in 3 minutes 5.26 seconds, a performance that ranks third on Athletics Canada’s list of best Canadian relays.

Lady-Knights take top provincial prize

The Nepean Knights Intermediate girls are provincials champions after winning the A championship at this year’s Ontario Championships for box lacrosse. The Knights won tight-fought games against Thunder Bay (4-3), Guelph (1-0) and Kingston (5-0), as well as tying Akwesasne (2-2) on the way to the tournament’s final. There they edged Six Nations 3-2 to win the provincial crown.