District students compete in cross-country, chess

This past weekend was a busy one for some students of Rainy River District as both the Northern Ontario Schools 12th-annual Chess Championships and the Mid-Canada Elementary School Cross-Country Run were held in Thunder Bay.
< *c>Cross-country
Although students took part in the Rainy River District Athletic Association’s regional cross-country run earlier this month, Crossroads teacher Brad Gushulak explained it was not a qualifier for Thunder Bay.
“Anyone can participate in the run in Thunder Bay if the schools want to put them in or if parents want to take them,” Gushulak noted, adding lately it’s generally been parents driving children there to participate.
Because some local schools didn’t have enough runners to form a team, they are not listed by school in the results posted at www.sencia.ca/article/legion-run-175.asp
Therefore, results for the district are not necessarily complete.
But it seems Donovan Cousineau of St. Francis School placed third among the boys and Brandon McGinnis of Donald Young School finished 10th.
Others from the area also did well, including Mitchell Haw (29th), Brody Strachan (60th), Brady Heyens (61st), Jake Vandenbrand (64th), Nolan Short (74th), Matt Armstrong (119th), Zack Tolen (125th), Jason Strom (136th), and Connor Botsford (166th).
The girls’ race saw Saragh Fraser of Riverview School (Rainy River) finishing ninth overall and Skylar Arpin, also of Riverview, placing 21st.
Some of the other competitors were Jillian Langtry (14th), Jillian Bobzynski (26th), Kaylee Heyens (29th), Jenna Jarvis (30th), Danielle Jean (41st), Emily Fraser (94th), Myan Miller (104th), Jalena Strom (114th), Jessica Haw (115th), and Shelby Tymkin (116th).
There were 213 competitors in the boys’ race and 250 in the girls’ one.
Donald Young School principal Lucinda Meyers explained the races were not split into age categories—students in Grades 4-8 all competed together.
“They did really great,” she said of the two DYS runners. “I’m very proud of them.”
< *c>Chess
Official results from the chess championship were unavailable as of press time, but parent Katherine Williams identified some of the top players.
Her son, Maxwell, placed first in the nine and under category, which earned him a spot in the Canadian Youth Chess Championships’ national finals in Ottawa next July.
In addition, Ben Miller, Ian Grant, and Nathan Zimmerman, in the 12-13 category, received medals and qualified for the national championship.
Kevin Zhang and Lemuel Caradice of Riverview school also advanced.
Many other district students participated in the chess meet in Thunder Bay and it was noted everyone did a great job.