Sports|

TheReview

Wednesday, August 5, 1992 — AI9

Peninsula athletes bring medals home from Barcelona

by Robert Peters
The Review

Peninsula athletes are bringing
home medals from the Olympic
Games in Barcelona. i

Brenda Taylor, who moved to
Sidney recently from Nanaimo,
won two gold medals this week-
end, first as a member of Canada’s
women’s coxless fours team with
Kirsten Barnes, Jessica Monroe
and Kay Worthington, then in the
women’s eights on Sunday. ©

The fours team are the reigning
world champions and showed why.
at Lake Banyoles, the rowing
venue in Spain.

Sidney’s Eric Jespersen paired
with Ross MacDonald of Van-
-couver to win a bronze medal in
yachting.

Jespersen’s medal came in the
Star class.

“I’m just thrilled and really
proud of Enc and looking forward
to seeing him and his medal,” said
his wife Anne, who was following
Eric’s progress with daily faxes
from Barcelona.

“I thought every day it was
beginning to look more and more
of a long-shot,” she said.

In a CTY interview following
the seven-race series broadcast
Sunday, Jespersen said that he is
dedicating his Olympic bronze

medal to his sister Julie, who was
unable to compete with the gold-
medal winning Canadian women’s
eights rowing crew after a person-
nel change by the coach.

Jespersen also told the Canadian
television network that he and
partner Ross MacDonald knew
they needed a first- or second-
Place finish in the final race to
capture an Olympic medal.

As well, the sailors in second
and third place had to have a poor

showing — no better than 20th —
for the Canadian boat to advance,
Jesperson said.

“The scenario happens quite
often in sailing,” MacDonald said.
~ But, usually there are only two or
three boats involved and you can
chase after the person you have to
beat.”

In the final Olympic competi-
tion, there were six boats in close
contention and, instead of concen-
trating on beating one or two
boats, the Canadian sailors took a
different tact.

“Our game plan was to get out
ahead early and stay there,” Mac-
Donald said.

One of the contenders, from
Germany, finished the race in 18th
place, while another close conten-
der, the Swedes, finished 19th.

Jespersen is scheduled to arrive .

home tomorrow.

In athletics, Angela Chalmers,
who trains with the Peninsula
Track and Field Club, won a
bronze medal Sunday in the
women’s 3000-m.

Chalmer’s was the third-fastest
qualifier and matched that in the
final race with a strong kick over
the final 400 metres to propel her
past the fourth-place finisher.

Chalmers’s time was 8:47.2,
behind gold medal winner Yelena
Romanova in 8:46.4 and Tatyana
Dorovskikh, the silver medalist in
8:46.8. The top two finishers were
both from the Unified Team.

Chalmers is also scheduled to
tun in the 1,500-m. The qualifying
heats begin today and the final is
on Saturday.

And while modern pentathlete
Ian Soellner won’t be coming
home with a medal his dad said he
is nonetheless pleased with his
Olympic experience.

“He’s really doing well, a little
disappointed in the shoot and the

ae
ee r

THE WEATHER WAS HOT, but so were the players during
three-on-three basketball at Centennial Park during Cen-

tral Saanich Days Sunday.

GLENN WERKMAN photo.

run, but other than that he’s really
happy with his first Olympics,”
said Gil Soellner in an interview
Monday after talking to Ian on the
phone from Barcelona.

The 23-year-old Soellner wound
up as the top Canadian in the event
in 43rd place, ahead of friend and
teammate Laurie Shong of Van-
couver, who placed 59th in the
field of 66.

Soellner had 4,945 points after
the five-event, two-day competi-
tion.

The gold medal went to
Poland’s Arkadiusz Skrzpaszek,

who scored 5,559 points, and Hun-
gary’s Attila Mizser captured the
silver with 4,446 points.

Soellner was 42nd after the
fencing, but after a personal best in
the swimming portion he dropped
to 50th overall and then 54th
following what were for him sub-
standard results in the pistol shoot
and run.

“Overall the competition was
the toughest it’s ever been,” said
Gil Soellner. “There were previ-
ous world and Olympic champi-
ons who placed in the standings
near Ian.

“He was expecting to do better
in the run, but he wasn’t used to 43
C heat with 90 per cent humidity,”
said Soellner.

His son has since been cheering
on other Canadian athletes, said
Gil Soellner, noting his son was a
cheering section leader when
Mark Tewksbury set an Olympic
record and won gold in the 100-m
backstroke Friday.

Soellner will be home at the end —
of the month to retum for his third
year at UVic studying human per-
formance. He took the past year
off to train for the Olympics.

INCLUDES:

“Port Sidney's
Newest Waterfront

Dining Experience”

WIN A TRIP FOR TWO
TO THE MOLSON
INDY IN VANCOUVER

e Return Airfare
e Limo to and from B.C. Place
¢ Indy Tickets Sun., Aug. 30th, 1992

HERE’S HOW:
Lan

|) 7a.m.-10p.m.
i |AT THE FOOT
OF BEACON

PAY FOR THE

20,000th
DINER

at McGinty’s and
Win this

-Day Get-Away
es

<——>*

Or ¥ y 4
ag |
ed y

7
3s ie
ee
7
|

y
y One