SILVER FOR SILVER LAKE AT ROWONTARIO CHAMPIONSHIPS

Anna Ardiel returns to the dock following her silver medal row at the ROWONTARIO Championships.

Anna Ardiel won a silver medal while Rachel Brinkman and Lene Dover earned their way to the finals at the ROWONTARIO Championships held in Welland on the weekend.

Ardiel of Normandale raced three times in one day to place second overall in a field of over twenty entries in the Under 19 Women's Single event. Ardiel placed second in her heat to advance to the semi-finals and second in the semi-final to advance to the final. With 800 meters to go in the final, the race was still very tight amongst five rowers. "I realized then I could medal and just went for it" said Ardiel. According to Coach Sue Fairley, "Anna proved today she combines great style with an extremely high level of fitness and a real competitive spirit."

Rachel Brinkman of Port Dover and Lene Dover of Simcoe advanced to the final n the Under 23 Women's Double event by placing second in their heat. In the final, they placed sixth. According to Coach John Brinkman, "We've been struggling with the rigging throughout the summer but got it right in the last couple of weeks. Today, Rachel and Lene had two good rows they should be proud of."

In other Silver Lake entries, Terry Lovegrove and Robbie Puddy narrowly missed qualifying for the finals in the Under 17 Men's Double event by placing third in their heat with two to qualify. According to Lovegrove, "It was so sweet to beat the crew from St. Catharines who had beaten us by open water at the beginning of the season. It showed how much we've improved." Also rowing at the Ontario Championships were Jeff Puddy and Nick Ryerse in the Under 19 Men's Double event. Jeff Puddy also competed in the Under 19 Men's Single event.

During the Championships, Laura Fisher of Port Ryerse competed in various races as a member of the Junior National Team Women's Four. They achieved their goal of breaking the seven minute barrier by posting a blistering time of 6:56. According to Puddy, "We were waiting for our race when we saw the start of Laura's crew. They were just awesome out of the gates!"

The Ontario Championships mark the end of the competitive rowing season for most Silver Lake rowers. However, Ardiel will be competing at the Royal Canadian Henley in St. Catharines (a North American championship) while Fisher will be competing at the World championships in Brandenburg Germany. Both regattas are held during the first week in August.