By Corey Fischer

Hill Named To Team Canada

Jan 25, 2018 | 10:22 AM

Another Vernon athlete has confirmed a trip to the upcoming Winter Olympics in South Korea.

Snowboardcross racer Kevin Hill is one of 13 athletes named to the Canadian team in snowboardcross, halfpipe and parallel giant slalom.

The 31 year old Hill was Canada’s top male finisher in snowboardcross in eighth at the 2014 Games in Sochi.

Pictured: Kevin Hill

“I honestly don’t put much pressure on myself going into the Games but I have one thing on my mind and that’s getting on the podium,” says Hill. “For that to happen it has to be my day where everything lines up in place just like X Games 2015: you wake up, you feel good, your starts are perfect and you ride like no one can touch you all day. I know that the entire team is going to shine and make Canada proud.”

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The snowboardcross events in South Korea will be held Feb. 15 and 16.

Other athletes from Vernon going to the 2018 Games are Andrew Ebbett in men’s hockey and Emma Lunder in biathlon.

The athletes were selected based on their performances in FIS World Cup and World Championship events between July 1, 2016 and January 21, 2018.

The snowboarders nominated are:

Baptiste Brochu – Snowboardcross – Saguenay, QC
Kevin Hill – Snowboardcross – Vernon, BC
Chris Robanske – Snowboardcross – Calgary, AB
Carle Brenneman – Snowboardcross – Comox, BC
Zoe Bergermann – Snowboardcross – Erin, ON
Tess Critchlow – Snowboardcross – Kelowna, BC
Meryeta O’Dine – Snowboardcross – Prince George, BC

Jasey-Jay Anderson – Parallel Giant Slalom -Mont-Tremblant, QC
Darren Gardner – Parallel Giant Slalom – Burlington, ON

Derek Livingston – Halfpipe – Aurora, ON
Mercedes Nicoll – Halfpipe – Whistler, BC
Elizabeth Hosking – Halfpipe – Longueuil, QC
Calynn Irwin – Halfpipe – Toronto, ON

Alternates: Trevor Niblett – Toronto, ON – Halfpipe, Sébastien Beaulieu – Sherbrooke, QC – Parallel Giant Slalom

Vancouver 2010 Olympic Champion Jasey-Jay Anderson will be the first Canadian to compete at six Olympic Winter Games, having been a member of every team since snowboard was introduced at Nagano 1998.

Elizabeth Hosking, 16, will be the youngest athlete on Team Canada at PyeongChang 2018.

Before departing for PyeongChang, the Snowboardcross athletes will compete in Bansko, Bulgaria and in Feldberg, Germany.

The Parallel Giant Slalom athletes will also compete in Bansko while the Halfpipe team will be training in Calgary.

With seven medals in only five Olympic Games, Canada is one of the top snowboarding nations in the world. Canada has won at least one Olympic medal in every snowboard discipline except Halfpipe and Big Air, which will debut in PyeongChang.

Snowboard Halfpipe, Snowboardcross, and Parallel Giant Slalom will take place at Phoenix Snow Park in South Korea.

Parallel Giant Slalom will take place February 10-12 (Days 1-3), Halfpipe February 12-14 (Days 3-5), and Snowboardcross February 15-16 (Days 6-7).

by Corey Fischer