5 Team Canada sports to watch this weekend: March 15-17
There’s lots for Team Canada fans to look forward to this weekend, with world championships on the go and some Paris 2024 qualification opportunities on the line.
Canada’s top short trackers will be on the ice at the ISU World Short Track Speed Skating Championships in the Netherlands, while Team Homan will have the home crowd behind them at the World Women’s Curling Championship in Sydney, Nova Scotia.
Also hoping for some hometown success are the Canadian biathletes who are welcoming the world to the IBU World Cup in Canmore, Alberta. Meanwhile, Eliot Grondin aims to keep his season-long podium streak going in snowboard cross.
There is also action on the water as Canada’s best slalom paddlers compete for Olympic spots at the Pan American Olympic Qualifier.
Here’s what you don’t want to miss:
Short Track Speed Skating
After much success on the World Cup circuit, 10 Canadians will conclude their season at the ISU World Short Track Speed Skating Championships in Rotterdam, Netherlands.
Four athletes who were medallists in individual events at last year’s world championships will be back in action: Steven Dubois, Pascal Dion, Courtney Sarault and Kim Boutin.
The Canadians enter this final competition of the 2023-24 season after a string of solid international results since October. Dubois finished second in the men’s overall World Cup classification, just ahead of teammate William Dandjinou, who placed third overall despite missing the final World Cup with a concussion.
Jordan Pierre-Gilles, Dubois and Félix Roussel also made their mark on the World Cup circuit, finishing first, second and third overall in the 500m, respectively. Dubois also took second place in the 1000m rankings, while Dandjinou finished first in the 1500m rankings.
In the women’s events, Boutin, Danaé Blais, and Rikki Doak all won individual World Cup medals this season. Joining Sarault in rounding out the team is Renée Steenge.
The finals of the women’s and men’s 1500m and 500m events will take place on Saturday, while the finals of the 1000m, mixed relay, women’s 3000m relay and men’s 5000m relay will be held on Sunday.
Curling
All eyes of the curling world will be on Sydney, Nova Scotia where the World Women’s Curling Championship kicks off this weekend. This is the 45th edition of the event, but the first time it will be hosted in Nova Scotia.
There should be stiff competition between the 13 teams, who qualified through either the Pan Continental Curling Championships (which took place in Kelowna, B.C. in November) or the European Curling Championships. There aren’t just medals on the line. The results from this year’s world championships (women/men/mixed doubles) will be combined with those of the 2025 World Championships to determine the bulk of Olympic curling qualification for Milano Cortina 2026.
Team Canada is represented by Team Homan, consisting of skip Rachel Homan, vice-skip Tracy Fleury, second Emma Miskew, lead Sarah Wilkes and alternate Rachel Brown. Olympians Homan and Miskew are no strangers to the top of the world championship podium, having won the title as teammates in 2017.
Snowboard Cross
The penultimate FIS World Cup stop for snowboard cross takes place in Montafon, Austria, this weekend.
Eliot Grondin is well on his way to winning his first career Crystal Globe with just four races to go. The 22-year-old has finished on the podium in every one of the eight World Cup events contested so far this season, earning five wins to go with two second- and one third-place finish. With 720 points, he has a 372-point lead over his nearest rival for the coveted title of World Cup champion.
Canoe/Kayak Slalom
The 2024 COPAC Canoe Slalom Pan American Championships and Olympic Qualifier are taking place March 14-17 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The top-ranked NOC not yet qualified in each of the men’s and women’s K-1 and C-1 events will secure quota spots for Paris 2024.
The Canadian team includes the five slalom paddlers who competed at the Santiago 2023 Pan American Games. Alex Baldoni and Maël Rivard lead the Canadians competing in the men’s K-1, in which they are joined by Trevor Boyd, Nathan Christensen, Mark Zielonka, and Isaac Zimmerman. Baldoni will also be in the men’s C-1 as will junior-aged Zimmerman. Léa Baldoni, Florence Maheu, and Lois Betteridge are entered in the women’s K-1. Baldoni and Betteridge will double up and also compete in the women’s C-1.
READ: What are the differences between canoes and kayaks, sprint vs slalom events?
Biathlon
More than 200 athletes from over 25 nations descend upon Canmore, Alberta this weekend for the IBU Biathlon World Cup. This is the final stop on the IBU World Cup circuit this season, meaning that 10 World Cup globes will be awarded, including the Nations Cup.
Canadians to keep an eye out for include Emma Lunder and Benita Peiffer on the women’s side and Adam Runnalls and Christian Gow on the men’s side.
Thursday featured the women’s 7.5km sprint, followed by the men’s 10km sprint on Friday On Saturday, the men’s 12,5km and women’s 10km pursuit races will take place, followed by the men’s 15km and women’s 12.5km mass start races on Sunday.