Maple Ridge’s three Special Olympics athletes are returning from Kamloops with several medals after their spectacular performances last weekend at the 2023 Special Olympics BC Winter Games.
READ MORE: Maple Ridge athletes head to 2023 Special Olympics BC Winter Games
For the alpine skiing events, Katherine St. Amand and Matthew Bueschkens put on an absolute clinic as they both snagged podium finishes.
St. Amand’s best performance came in the alpine intermediate super g event, where she tied Kailyn Potomak from Langley for first place with a time of 38.20 seconds.
But Amand wasn’t done there as she continued to earn bronze medals in both alpine intermediate slalom and alpine intermediate giant slalom.
Bueschkens had his best performance in the alpine intermediate super g event, where he finished in second place with a time of 38.40 seconds, earning himself a silver medal.
His other two competitions – alpine intermediate slalom and alpine intermediate giant slalom – saw him finish in fourth place, only a few seconds shy of getting medals.
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Dan Catarig was the sole athlete representing his new hometown of Maple Ridge in floor hockey, where he was able to earn a gold medal as a member of the Mission Blazers.
Catarig and his team started off on the right foot, beating the Kelowna Grizzlies in a 5-2 match, and continued their momentum, ending the day with a 7-5 win over Delta.
On Saturday, they opened up the matches with a 6-2 win over Kamloops, followed by a slim 4-3 victory against Richmond, leaving the Mission team undefeated in the provincial tournament.
Many of the winners at the 2023 Special Olympics BC Winter Games will now be headed to the 2024 Special Olympics Canada Winter Games, which are set to be hosted in Calgary.
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