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Whistler's first medal of the 2024 Winter Youth Olympics belongs to Anthony Shelly.
The talented two-sport athlete battled through for snowboard cross silver on Jan. 20, just behind victor Jonas Chollet of France. Brazili's Zion Bethonico found enough speed for bronze.
Shelly admitted that he did not see this result coming.
“It's pretty surprising to me, I have to say," he told reporters after the event. "I wasn't expecting it. I was just like, 'I want to have fun, really,' but it's very cool. I was like: 'there’s zero chance that [silver medal] just happened. What?'
“I'm very happy that my dad's able to be a part of [my journey]. It means a lot to me, and snowboarding has been a part of my life for a long time. I'm very appreciative.”
Hannah Turkington managed a respectable showing in her own right. Though she failed to make the women's big final, Turkington capped off her Gangwon experience in fifth by taking top spot in the small final.
Swiss rider Noemie Wiedmer clinched the boardercross title, sharing the podium with two French contenders: Maja-Li Iafrate Danielsson in second and Lea Casta in third.
Opening weekend results
A number of other Whistler-based athletes have also seen action in South Korea.
Bastian van Wouw put together a top-10 performance in men's singles luge. Clocking a time of one minute and 34.697 seconds, van Wouw ended up eighth.
"I’m really happy with how it went. The top 10 finish is all I could ask for, I’m really happy with it," said van Wouw in a press release. "I’ve had a few messages from friends and family already following the race congratulating me, and it’s really good to see that I have people supporting me. The experience of being at such an important competition will help me know how to relax when I need to for the runs that I need to put down in the future. I’m so happy to be here, it’s been a lot of fun."
On the ladies' side, Maya Yuen paced Canadians in 11th (1:38.277). Two spots behind her was Kaia Hatton in 13th (1:38.527), and Ava Lucia Huerta brought up the rear in 28th (1:43.085). Lucia Huerta is the youngest member of Team Canada, at 14 years old.
Talia Melun checked in for ninth in women's monobob (1:56.06).
"Overall, this Youth Olympic experience has been amazing and I definitely have enjoyed it a lot. I’m grateful for everyone who has helped me along the way," said Melun after the event.
Meanwhile, Sea to Sky Nordics biathletes Josie Clifford and Graham Benson combined for 25th in the single mixed relay. Representing Great Britain, Clifford and Benson finished five spots behind the Canadian duo of Cheyenne Tirschmann and Luke Hulshof.
Expect to see local ski cross racer Anne-Marie Joncas in the mix tomorrow. Amalia Pelchat is set to engage on Wednesday for snowboard slopestyle.
Full results are available here.
