February 18, 2007 (Gatineau, Quebec) – Mother Nature finally smiled on the organizers of the Keskinada Loppet. Despite a light snowfall in the morning, the -8 degrees Celsius was just the ticket for cross-country skiing. Hundreds of skiers met up for the 9 a.m. start for the day’s two big races, the Craft 28 K and the Salomon 53 K.

Salomon 53 K Classic Style
Matching his personal best, Rosemere’s Phil Shaw delivered quite a performance, beating his closest rival by almost 11 minutes. Phil Shaw is a regular on the Keski podium, having climbed to the top step in 2006 and finishing third in 2005. The second place spot was hotly contested by Esthonia’s Raivo Parnpuu and Erik Grimm, from New York State. By the end of this mad race, the American had gained 10 seconds on his European fellow racer.

Among the women, Alberta’s Marg Fedyna finally took the top prize, after finishing this competition in third place for the past two years. Second place went to California’s Brandy Stewart, who was slightly under three minutes behind the competitor from Alberta. Third place was grabbed by Rimouski’s Louise Martineau.

Craft 28 K Classic Style
Sven Niederhauser, from Whitelake, Ontario, won the Classic 28 K in 1 hour and 25 minutes. At just 19 years of age, he first stood on the top step of the Keski podium for the 10 K Free-Style in 2004. Ottawa’s Dana Klassen swept through the finish line two minutes later. Robert Underwood, up from New York State, came in third with a time of 1 hour and 31 minutes.

For the women’s Craft 28 K, Caroline Drolet, from the Tremblant Nordique club came in a strong first. The young woman from St-Faustin du Lac finished this race in second place last year. Wakefield’s Jennifer Sanchez repeated her second place finish from 2005, earning a new silver medal. Ottawa’s Claudia Van Wijk earned herself a bronze, with a time of 1 hour and 52 minutes. It should be noted that Louise Poirier, Gatineau Municipal Councillor and member of the Keski Board, also earned a bronze medal in her age category, after finishing the course in 2 hours, 19 minutes and 50 seconds.

The youth contingent once again came through with flying colours in the shorter races. These loops give our new generation a chance to show off their X-country ski talents and at the same time to share experiences with participants from other provinces and countries. All between 12 and 17 years of age, every one of the winners of the Rossignol 5 K came from the national capital region. Among the boys, Chelsea’s Steffan Lloyd, Cantley’s Ezekiel Williams and Gatineau’s Samuel Dostie-Menard respectively earned first, second and third place.

Among the girls, Camille Pepin from Sorel-Tracy, Noémi Bérubé from Gatineau, and Julie Boisvert, also from Gatineau, all had their turn on the podium. All in all, 298 skiers came together for this event.

The 16 K, which is now in its second year, was dominated by the McVicar girls. Julie McVicar and Danielle McVicar, two sisters from Kanata, finished first and second, respectively. Less than one minute later, Ottawa’s Linnea Rudasch came through with a third place finish.

Ontario participants in the 16 K also had the upper hand among the boys, with the first and second place winners from Barrie and the third from Ottawa. Len Valjas, Mark Doble and Aidan Lennie won the three top honours, in order.

The Free Style day, which took place on Sunday, was dominated by Canadians. In the 53 K, Stephan Hart of Thunder Bay finished the course in 2 hours 28:24.8, only nine one-hundredths of a second ahead of Alberta’s Erik Carleton, two-time bronze medal winner of the Canadian Championships. Cyrus Kangarloo, another skier from Alberta, climbed to the third step of the podium, finishing two minutes ahead of Ottawa’s Karla Saidla.

In the women’s group, Brooke Gosling finally got her gold, after finishing third in 2005. She beat British Columbia’s Nikki Kassel by two minutes, as well as Ottawa’s Sheila Kealy.

Claude Laramée, outgoing President of the Keskinada, completed his tenth Worldloppet, doing the Keski 53 K for the very first time, making him a “Worldloppet Gold Master”.

For the men’s 28 K Free Style, Gavin Hamilton and Chris Mamen, both from Ottawa, climbed to the top two steps on the podium. Gatineau’s Patrice Doré won third place. Among the women, Waterloo’s Andrea Dupont took the gold. Brandy Stewart once again earned the silver, after finishing second in the 28 K Classic Style the day before. Third place went to Karine Perrin, from Ste-Adèle.

The Keskinada also offered up activities on the more recreational side in the afternoon, including the 10 K and the 2 K Mini-Keski, making room for the younger participants. The starting signal for the Mini was given by His Excellency Pasi Patokallio Ambassador of the Republic of Finland, the host country for this year’s event.

“This 20th edition also gave us the opportunity to read the pulse of our participants on the eve of our 30th anniversary jubilee. The event is at a crossroads, and we will soon be calling on our regional partners. It would be most regretful if such an event were to disappear,” concluded Alain d’Entremont.