January 8, 2006 – Dave Nighbor and Dasha Gaiazova continued to lead the next generation of Canada’s top cross-country skiers, claiming their second straight gold medals of the week – this time during the Madshus sprints on Saturday at the Haywood NorAm race series in Base Val Cartier, Que.

Nighbor, of North Bay, Ont., led the men’s field from start to finish after posting the fastest qualification time to move into the head-to-head heats with the top 30 racers. The heats consist of six athletes racing simultaneously with the top two in each heat moving on to the next round.

Nighbor crossed the line first ahead of training partner Graham Nishikawa of Whitehorse in the men’s final. Skeets Morel, of Thunder Bay, Ont. settled for the bronze medal position on the podium ahead of Cameron Egan on the challenging nordic track just north of Quebec City.

Meanwhile, Montreal’s Dasha Gaiazova maintained her position in the winner’s circle on the women’s side of the coin. Gaiazova held off a hard-charging Perianne Jones, of Almonte, Ont. to win the women’s race. Milaine Theriault, of St. Quentin, N.B., who is getting a final series of competitive races in before heading off to compete for Canada in the Olympic Winter Games finished third.

The Haywood NorAm’s, the premier development race series in the country, resumes on Sunday with the 10 and 20-km pursuit competitions. For complete results, visit www.zone4.ca . Photos of today’s action are available online at http://coupenoramquebec2006.skibec.ca/