Media Release
October 7, 2003 --- Awards Evening Winners
Triathlon Manitoba is pleased to announce our High Performance Award Winners for 2003. This year’s awards were distributed at the 2003 Annual Awards Night that was held at the Norwood Community Centre on Friday October 3, in front of 135 members and guests. High Performance Awards are given out each year to Triathlon Manitoba members who have excelled in their performances over the race season.
Volunteer of the Year
The Volunteer of the Year Award
recognized an individual who has shown a significant contribution and dedication
to volunteerism in Manitoba.
Triathlon Manitoba’s Volunteer of the
Year for 2003: Michelle Barnet!
2003 was Michelle’s 7th year as a lead
organizer with the Sandman and Lac du Bonnet Triathlons – again this year as
coordinator of registration, timing and results.
Michelle joined the Board of Directors of Triathlon Manitoba in 2000, and she
has been the Program Development Committee Chair ever since.
Program Development is our biggest Committee with many responsibilities.
Some of the area highlights for 2003:
A great deal of Triathlon Manitoba’s success in the past year is a result of the tremendous efforts and achievements of Michelle Barnet.
Coach of the Year
Recognizes the individual who has shown
a dedication and commitment to coaching in Manitoba, best displayed through
leadership and the development of Manitoba athletes.
Triathlon Manitoba Coaches of the Year
for 2003- the Teen Tri Coaching Team of Dave Lipchen, Brent Miller, Kris
Hildebrand!
This trio helped develop a new program that encouraged and developed youth in a fun group setting, fostering both athletic and social skills. These three coaches each have their particular triathlon strengths, which they brought to the program with an excellent rapport to the kids. They started with a handful of kids and grew to over 20 regular participants by September. At Youth Regionals, they had 13 kids participate in the event in which Manitoba won the cup. their enthusiam and efforts made the program a success.
Overall Grand Prix Series Winners for
2003
Grand Prix Series points are awarded to Triathlon Manitoba members at each of the six Olympic Distance triathlons (1500m swim, 40K bike, 10K run) and the Morden Half Ironman. An athlete's total race series points is sum of the race points from their 3 best races, and a minimum of 3 races are required.
Male
The Triathlon Manitoba Overall Male
Grand Prix Series winner for 2003: Patrick Peacock!
Patrick repeated his 2002 win of this series, with a busy summer racing. He won the overall race at Triple Threat, St Malo, Lac du Bonnet and Riding Mountain. He also raced at the Elite Triathlon Nationals in Victoria, Age group National Triathlon Championships in Edmonton and Duathlon Nationals in Calgary.
Female
The Triathlon Manitoba Overall Female
Grand Prix Series winner for 2003: Erica Stechesen!
Erica dominated the provincial triathlon
scene this year, winning all the races she entered. Her wins at the Triple
Threat Triathlon, St Malo and Riding Mountain events earned her the series win.
She also raced at the National Triathlon Championships in Edmonton and
Duathlon Nationals in Calgary.
Rookie of the Year Awards
The top male and female triathletes who
have shown the best performance in their first year of racing at the Sprint
distance or longer are awarded the rookie of the year award.
Each season, the number of newcomers
grows and the battle for the rookie of the year awards becomes more and more
hotly contested. Both the
male & female rookie in 2003 are members of the Tribalistic Triathlon Team.
Male
The
2003 Triathlon Manitoba Male Rookie of the Year:
Chris Graham!
Chris was already quite an accomplished swimmer when he joined our sport, so we knew he wouldn't have trouble with the first leg of his races. However, upon reflection, he didn't seem to have any difficulty with the bike or run either. He won his age-group at each of his first three races at the Sprint Distance, including finishing third overall at St.Malo Multisport Weekend and posting his fastest time of 1:04:28 at Pinawa Free-Spirit Triathlon. After that it was on to the Olympic distance, where he again won his age group at the Lac du Bonnet Triathlon in an impressive time of 2:16:17. It was clear that Chris was here to race and race hard.
Female
The 2003 Triathlon Manitoba Female Rookie of the Year: Bethany Pechey!
Throughout the 2003 training season, Bethany displayed an ability to push herself through a tough set and enjoy it. Her hard work throughout the pre-season delivered some immediate results, finishing second overall and winning her age group at the first two Short-Course Prestige Duathlons. As the triathlon season began, the results kept coming. competing at the Sprint distance, she never once finished off her age-group podium and earned many age-group wins. She completed each one of her races under 1:20:00, with her best time of 1:15:32 recorded at the St Malo Multisport Weekend. It's clear that the hard training and effort have paid off for Bethany.
Most
Improved Athletes of the Year
The top male and female triathletes who have shown the most improvement from one year to the next receive the most improved Triathlete award.
Male
The 2003 Triathlon Manitoba Most Improved Male Athlete of the Year: Josh Markham!
Josh trained over the past year with the Manitoba National Triathlon Centre (MNTC). He raced a number of events in 2003 and was a member of the 2003 Provincial Junior Team. He showed an improvement of just over 4 minutes on his 2002 time in the Sprint distance race at Pinawa. At Junior Nationals, he improved by over a minute and moved up 8 places from last year. His improvements over such a short distance are impressive.
Female
The
2003 Triathlon Manitoba Most Improved Female Athlete of the Year: Jenna
Wilson!
Jenna, in only her second competitive year in the sport, has continued to make significant improvements. She raced amongst a competitive junior girls category, where she consistently placed 1st or 2nd. Her time improvements in each event ranged from 9 minutes to an extremely impressive 18:44 difference at the Tripe Threat Triathlon. She trained over the year with the MNTC where she worked hard to improve her swimming and cycling abilities. Jenna was the top Manitoba female junior at both Duathlon and Triathlon Nationals where she earned & accepted spots on the Canadian teams for Worlds in both disciplines.
Long
Course Athlete of the Year
Presented
to the top male and female triathletes who have shown excellence in long course
competition. Athletes must complete at least two races greater than the Olympic
distance.
For 2003, there was no female recipient for this award category.
Male
Triathlon Manitoba’s 2003 Male Long
Course Athlete of the Year: Dan Morwood!
Dan has focused on long course racing
this season. He started off the season by racing in Spain at the ITU Worlds,
where he was the top Canadian. Recently
he completed Ironman Wisconsin, where he was second in his age group. His goal
was an Ironman Hawaii World spot, and he achieved this. We wish him luck when he races in Kona on October 18th.
Dan lives/trains in Brandon and is a member of the Westman Triumphs Team.
Youth Triathletes of the Year for
2003
This award recognizes excellence in competition at the Youth level. Must be 14 to 15 years old on 31 Dec. of competition year.
Male
The Triathlon Manitoba Male Youth
Triathlete of the Year for 2003: Greg Wernham!
Greg trained with the Teen Tri team this
summer and completed in 5 of the Kids of Steel events this summer where he
consistently placed 1st or 2nd in his age group.
In July he competed in the Eastern Kids of Steel Regional Championship
where he placed 7th of 35 athletes.
The Triathlon Manitoba Female Youth
Triathlete of the Year for 2003: Sarah-Anne Brault!
Sarah-Anne is a very talented young girl with lots of potential for the future. She can be seen as a role model for other athletes, as you never see her at an event without a smile. She won all 5 Kids of Steel events she entered this summer, including the Manitoba/Saskatchewan Regional event.
Junior Triathlete of the Year for 2003
This award recognizes excellence in competition at the junior level. Athletes must be 16 to 19 years old on 31 Dec of the competition year.
Male
The Triathlon Manitoba Male Junior Triathlete of the Year for 2003: Jacques Marcoux!
This young man has been undefeated in both the 2002 and 2003 racing seasons in the Junior age category. His best time of the season was a 1:01:09 at St Malo and broke the course record not only for Junior but also overall for the Sprint distance race. He placed 12th at Junior Nationals and won the Duathlon Nationals in the Junior Elite Division. He also was top Canadian and placed 32nd of 51 athletes at the World Duathlon Championships Junior Elite division.
Female
The Triathlon Manitoba Female Junior Triathlete of the Year for 2003: Erin Braun!
This was an extremely difficult category to win since we have so many talented athletes in this category. Erin won almost every race she did in Manitoba this summer. She showed consistency of performance by always placing in the top 2 Manitoba finishers in her age group at every event. She placed 7th at Junior Nationals and was 3rd at Duathlon Nationals in the Junior Elite race. Her performance at Junior Nationals qualified her for the 2004 Canadian Junior triathlon team that will compete in Madiera, Portugal next May.
Triathlon Manitoba's Triathletes of the Year for 2003
This award is for overall excellence at the highest level of Provinical, National and International competition.
Male
The Triathlon Manitoba Male Triathlete of the Year for 2003: Dan Morwood!
Dan has been competing in Triathlons in Manitoba for a number of years now and has been one of the best cyclists in our events. In Manitoba this year he raced in St Malo, Morden and Riding Mountain. He trains out in Brandon and is a member of very proud Westman Triumphs team.
He started his 2003 campaign in Cobden, Ontario in September 2002 at the Canadian Long Course Triathlon Championships. In this event, he won his age group (25-29) but also finished the event 8th overall - this included all the elite athletes. This showing secured him a spot on the Canadian Long Course World Championships in Ibiza, Spain on May 11, 2003.
In Spain, he finished in the top 20 of his age group and was by far the top Canadian finisher overall.
In July, he defended his title in Morden, MB at the Half Ironman on an extremely hot afternoon, winning the event in time of 4:33.21 - just 28 ahead of Peter Courogen from the USA.
Most recently, he competed in Ironman Wisconsin. In a time of 9:52.26 finishing 16th overall and 2nd in his age group and secured himself a spot for the Ironman World Championships in Kona, Hawaii in October 2003.
He has ultimately proven himself on the National and International scene in addition to illustrating his talents at the shorter distance in our Province. This is the first time a triathlete specializing in long-distance racing has won this award. Congratulations to Dan and best luck to him in Kona.
Female
The Triathlon Manitoba Female Triathlete
of the Year for 2003: Erica Stechesen!
Erica has given remarkable performances
this season both provincially and nationally.
She committed last fall to an intense training program, and the results
of this commitment were evident all season.
She won every race she entered, starting
with the early season duathlons. Just before the triathlon season began (which
she also dominated) she raced in the US Midwest National Championships and won
the event (beating the 2002 World Champion in her age group).
At Triathlon Nationals in Edmonton she won her age group, and had the
fastest Manitoba run that day ahead of all the men. A week later she raced in
the Elite heat at Duathlon Nationals where she won a silver medal.
These performances qualified her for worlds in both disciplines.
She trained over the past year with the
Manitoba-National Triathlon Centre, where she was a great role model to the
junior girls. This is the
first time in eleven years, that Manitoba has recognized a new female champion.
Congratulations Erica!
A number of other awards were given out
at the Annual Awards Evening, including: Sport Manitoba’s Order of Sport
Excellence Awards; Triathlon Manitoba’s Series Age Group Awards for the
Duathlon Series, the Sprint Series and the Grand Prix Series.
A complete list of all these award winners can be found on the website www.triathlon.mb.ca
For more information on this release please contact Triathlon Manitoba.
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This page was last updated on October 7, 2003