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Rossland siblings qualify for world ski championships

Rémi and Jasmine Drolet make victorious showing at Canmore qualifiers
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Jasmine Drolet will be going to her first international championships. (Submitted photo)

A pair of young Rossland cross-country skiers are heading to Europe for the World Junior Championships after a winning weekend of skiing in Canmore.

Siblings Rémi and Jasmine Drolet made the cut after winning their events at the Haywood NorAm World Junior/U-23 Championships Trials from Dec. 12-16.

There were three races: classic sprints (1.4 kilometres), skate distance (five kilometres for women, 10 kilometres for men) and classic distance (15 kilometres for women and 30 kilometres for men).

Rémi was racing in the junior men’s and Jasmine in the junior women’s divisions. At 16, Jasmine is technically a junior girl’s division racer but had to race in the junior women’s division to be able to qualify.

Rémi won his sprint race, which qualified him for the championships. He also came second in each of the other two races.

Jasmine won the classic long distance race, her first ever 15-kilometre race, to qualify. She was sixth overall in open women, beating women 20-plus years old.

The world championships will take place in Lathi , Finland from Jan. 20-27. The team will leave Canada on the Jan. 7 to go to Norway for a pre-championships camp.

The event will be 18-year-old Rémi’s second championships, as he attended the 2017 event in Soldier Hollow, Utah. This is Jasmine’s first international overseas event.

By qualifying for the event, Rémi and Jasmine also automatically qualify for the Canada Winter Games in Red Deer in February.

Kimberley skier Molly Miller, another Black Jack team member, also qualified by winning the five-kilometre skate race. Having three athletes from the club qualifying is an extraordinary feat, considering that the Canadian team will be comprised of 10 junior and 10 U-23 athletes from across the country.

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