Findlay Winfield Hopkins Winners 2011

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

June 19, 2012

Triathlon Canada Doles Out Annual Hardware to 2011 Winners

—Findlay and Whitfield repeat as elite winners, Jennifer Hopkins claims para-triathlon category—

TORONTO—Familiar faces were recognized by Triathlon Canada on Monday as the national body doled out its annual awards to recognize exceptional performances in 2011 as Canadian athletes begin to kick the new season into full gear.

2011 Canadian Triathlon Championships

Some of Canada’s finest triathletes have confirmed their participation in the 29th annual Pushor Mitchell Kelowna Apple Triathlon taking place August 19 to 21 in Kelowna. Amongst them are 36-year-old, two-time Olympic medal winner Simon Whitfield of Victoria, 26-year-old Kyle Jones of Oakville, Ontario and 22-year-old Edmonton native Paula Findlay.

Findlay placed 29th in the ITU Triathlon World Championship Series Race in London on August 6, testing her recovery from a hip injury.

“It is not the result I wanted, but I have to put things into perspective and I can’t expect to be there with the fastest girls having not run in nearly five weeks,” said Findlay, whose lower placing in London reduced her ITU elite ranking to third overall.

“When I made the decision to race, I knew I didn’t have the fitness, but wanted to come and experience the London course so I can be prepared for next year.”

Jones and Whitfield turned in a solid performance at the same event in London. Jones finished as the top Canuck in 19th place, clocking a time of 1:52:10.

Whitfield clocked-in at 1:52:23 to take 23rd spot in the 67-strong field of the world’s best triathletes.

Kelowna always makes for an exciting battle ground for these two as well. In 2010 Whitfield took the Canadian title in Kelowna, beating Jones in a sprint finish by a mere fifth of a second.

Elite males from eleven countries and Elite women from five countries will participate in the 2011 Kelowna ITU Triathlon Pan American Cup, also hosted by the Pushor Mitchell Kelowna Apple Triathlon.

With close to 2,000 event entries expected for the three-day event and more than 1,200 volunteer positions, the Pushor Mitchell Kelowna Apple Triathlon is the largest Canadian triathlon, acknowledged as one of the best organized events in Canada.

Nine days before the event, almost 500 of 1,200 volunteer positions have yet to be filled. One person can fill more than one position, and volunteers can visit the event website at http://www.appletriathlon.com/participate-volunteers.php to register. Available volunteer positions are mainly on the bike and run courses on Saturday and Sunday. People are also needed for equipment set-up and take-down on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

More information on the weekend’s events is available at http://www.appletriathlon.com/events.php. The “Apple” offers races for all ages and stages, from Kids of Steel, to the Try-a-Tri, a fun run, aquathon, the business challenge relay, Junior Elites, competitive age-groupers, and finishes with the Male and Female Elite races on Sunday, August 21.

The event is organized by the Kelowna Apple Triathlon Society (KATS), a non-profit society. Triathlon Canada is the governing body for triathlon in Canada. Since its recognition as an Olympic medal sport from 2000, Triathlon Canada’s mandate is to promote, foster, organize and develop the sport of triathlon and its related disciplines in Canada. For more information on Triathlon Canada, visit www.triathloncanada.com .

Less then 40 days to go

There are less than 40 days left before Canada's top triathletes descend on Kelowna for the 29th annual Pushor Mitchell Kelowna Apple Triathlon (August 19-21) to participate in the Canadian National Triathlon Championships, the ITU Triathlon Pan American Cup and the Western Canadian Youth Championships (12-15).

In addition to the triathlon events, Okanagan Masters Swim Club will also be hosting the FINA approved Kelowna Apple Open Water Swim Invitational.

The Pushor Mitchell Apple Triathlon is also a Qualifier for the2012 ITU World Championship Series Grand Final in Auckland, New Zealand, which is set to take place 18-22 October 2012. More details are available on TriCanada's website at http://triathloncanada.com/en/page.


Canada's golden girl and Edmonton native, Paula Findlay and Olympic champion Simon Whitfield, who has also won the national title nine times, were the 2010 Canadian National Championship Elite gold winners and also winners of the ITU Pan American Cup. The Junior Elite titles were won by Matt Sharpe of Victoria and Joanna Brown of Carp.


The 2010 Apple once again drew record participation of more than 1,800 entries. We expect to reach 2,000 event entries this year. This will require the support of more than 1,200 volunteer positions. We have already had a large number of people register for this and know that our loyal volunteers from previous years will once again step up to make this event not only possible,but a great Okanagan experience for all of our participants.


Make sure you register early as Sunday entrants will be limited to the first 1,200!

Visit our website at www.appletriathlon.com for more information on this outstanding national event which has a race and place for all!


Provided by Jeanette Hoft

Findlay and Whitfield Take Honours

Picture courtesy of Digital Wonders

Findlay and Whitfield take honours at the 2010 Canadian National Triathlon Championships and ITU Kelowna Pan American Cup


Pre-race favourites, Paula Findlay and Simon Whitfield were crowned Canada’s 2010 National triathlon and ITU Pan American Cup champions in Kelowna this weekend.  The Pushor Mitchell Apple Triathlon hosts both the Canadian National Triathlon Championships and the ITU Kelowna Pan American Cup, so two races in one.

It was by no means an easy win for Whitfield, coming in just twenty hundredths of a second ahead of teammate Kyle Jones. Marcus Fernandus of Brazil followed Whitfield and Jones in third position in the ITU Kelowna Pan American Cup, which featured 72 athletes from eight countries.  A split second seems to be the way it goes with the Elite Men’s race. In 2009 Jones finished behind Whitfield, just ten hundredths of a second ahead of Paul Tichelaar.

Since only Canadians can place in the National Championships, Andrew Russell’s sixth place overall, placed him in third place for Elite Male in the National Championships.

The young women proved their mettle this weekend.  The first three places overall in the ITU Kelowna Pan American Cup were taken by U23’s. 21-year old Findlay was followed by Kirsten Sweetland of Canada and Flora Duffy of Bermuda. The race included 26 women from six countries. 

Chantal Widney, fourth overall, placed as third Elite Woman in the Canadian Championships.

Within the U23 category of the Male Elite event of the Canadian National Championships, Yanik Leduc placed first, with Jean-Phillipe ThiBodeau second and Tyler Bredschneider third.  The female U23 category was taken by Paula Findlay, Kirsten Sweetland in second and Sarah-Anne Brault third.

The Canadian Triathlon Championships include the Age Group Sprint and Olympic distance, with the same distances for paratriathletes.  For detailed results please consult the Race Headquarters website, the official timekeepers for this event on http://www.raceheadquarters.com/results/multi_2010.htm.

With more than 1,800 event entries for the three-day event and close to 1,200 volunteers, the Pushor Mitchell Kelowna Apple Triathlon is not only the largest Canadian triathlon, but also one of the best organized events in Canada, comparing favourably with several leading world triathlon events. It offers races for all ages and stages, from Kids of Steel to the Try-a-Tri, the business challenge relay, competitive age-groupers, and of course, peaking with the Male and Female Elites.

The Pushor Mitchell Apple Triathlon was the final preparation for Canada’s Elite and Age group athletes who will be participating in the ITU Triathlon World Championships in Budapest this September.

Triathlon Canada is the governing body for triathlon in the country. Recognized as an Olympic medal sport since 2000, Triathlon Canada’s mandate is to promote, foster, organize and develop the sport of triathlon, and its related disciplines, in Canada. 

For more information on Triathlon Canada, please visit us at www.triathloncanada.com on the Internet.

Results from Sunday

Canadian National Championships: Elite Men

1)      Simon Whitfield 1.55.40.40; 2) Kyle Jones 1.55.40.60; 3) Andrew Russell 1.58.19.70

Canadian National Championships: Elite Women

1)      Paula Findlay 2.02.37;  2) Kirsten Sweetland 2.03.25; 3) Chantal Widney 2.07.02

Canadian National Championships: U23 Men

1)      Yanik Leduc 2.01.29;  2) Jean-Philippe Thibodeau; 2.01.54  3) Tyler Bredschneider 2.02.21

Canadian National Championships: U23 Women

1)      Paula Findlay 2.02.37;  2) Kirsten Sweetland 2.03.25;  3) Sarah-Anne Brault 2.09.28

ITU Kelowna Pan American Cup: Elite Men

1)      Simon Findlay (CAN)  1.55.40.40; 2) Kyle Jones (CAN) 1.55.40.60;  3) Marcus Fernandus (BRA) 1.56.26.40

ITU Kelowna Pan American Cup: Elite Women

1)      Paula Findlay (CAN) 2.02.37  2) Kirsten Sweetland (CAN) 2.03.25  3) Flora Duffy (BER) 2.04.47

Jeanette Hoft

Media and Communications Director

Pushor Mitchell Apple Triathlon

Cell 1-250-215-3623    jeanette@hoft.ca

http://www.appletriathlon.com/

2010 Triathlon on Video

2010 was another record year for the Pushor Mitchell Apple Triathlon!

This years event was record year in all areas including the number of athletes, volunteers and the largest number of elite athletes competing  in Canadian Triathlon history! It was truly an international event with athletes from across Canada, USA, Chile, Brazil, Barbados, Sweden, Argentina, Great Britain, Bermuda, Australia.

Check out some of the highlights from Humberto Morales for OKBC.TV below. Thanks Humberto!

Posted by Mike Hassard Vice President of Kelowna Apple Triathlon Society.