Photo by Marcel Vander Wier
KING OF THE COURT 鈥� Austin Shepherd-Wipp of the Holy Family Hurricanes serves up a birdie during the boys singles final at Elijah Smith Elementary School Wednesday.
Students crowned badminton champs
Elementary school students from across the city took to the badminton courts Wednesday to battle for the 2014 championship titles.
Elementary school students from across the city took to the badminton courts Wednesday to battle for the 2014 championship titles.
Players from 10 schools spent the day playing games in the gymnasiums at Elijah Smith Elementary School and 脡cole 脡milie-Tremblay.
Hard-fought victories turned into medals by the afternoon for the top players who emerged from the simultaneous tournaments.
In individual play, Holy Family's Austin Shepherd-Wipp and Takhini's Rizza Robles emerged as male and female singles champs at Elijah Smith.
Shepherd-Wipp beat Golden Horn rival Anton Menzel in the final.
Better known for playing hockey, volleyball and baseball, the Grade 6 student picked up a badminton racquet for the first time this season.
"I just wanted to try it out and it was fun,鈥� the 12-year-old said. "It was great to smash some birdies.鈥�
Robles, a Grade 7 student, beat Jack Hulland's Izabella House to claim her first badminton title.
"I feel proud,鈥� the 12-year-old told the Star. "I've been playing for eight years ... I like whacking stuff.鈥�
At 脡cole 脡milie-Tremblay, Hidden Valley's Bryce Anderson beat Selkirk's Ritik Sharma to win the boys singles title, while Nora Vincent-Braun of Whitehorse Elementary downed Marjori Firm from Christ the King in the girls singles championship.
The students were lauded for their hard play and good sportsmanship by tournament organizer Lisa Harvey.
On top of simply playing the game, the young players were also charged with the task of keeping track of the score.
"They showed their sportsmanship by playing independently and sorting out their differences,鈥濃�圚arvey said. "We wanted to focus on them getting to know the basic rules of the game.鈥�
Harvey said because the tournament was played at two different locations, it wasn't a "true championship.鈥�
Regardless, students went home proud and happy.
Doubles champions from 脡cole 脡milie-Tremblay were: Whitehorse Elementary's Ben Shier and Kate Storey (Mixed); Hidden Valley's Emiko Teramura and Elese Duncan (Girls); and Whitehorse Elementary's Zach Zimmermann and Brendan Carbado-Atkin (Boys).
Doubles winners at Elijah Smith were: Jack Hulland's Brett Walchuk and Sarah Knaack (Mixed); Takhini's Amber Baker and Tugugin Swan (Girls); and Jack Hulland's Evyn Dinn and Seth Carey (Boys).
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