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Three UVic rowers are headed to the Tokyo Olympic Games
Photo of Avalon Wasteneys, provided by UVic.
Last month Rowing Canada Aviron and the Canadian Olympic Committee announced the 29 athletes who will be representing Canada in the 10 boats qualified for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics taking place this summer. Of those athletes, three are current rowers from the University of Victoria.
Avalon Wasteneys and Patrick Keane will be making their Olympic rowing debuts while Caileigh Filmer will be returning for her second Games after competing in Rio 2016.
“Obviously Olympic gold is our goal,” said Wasteneys. “However, we’re also so aware that this is a really cool opportunity to be completely internal and focused on ourselves.”
David Shoemaker, CEO and secretary general of the COC, says his organization will work with government agencies to confirm details. “We were happy to learn from the IOC that Pfizer and BioNTech will donate vaccine doses for Tokyo 2020 Games participants. In Canada this represents approximately 1,100 people and will add an important layer of protection for Canadian athletes in the lead up to and during the Games,” Shoemaker said in a statement. The COC has been saying that Canadian athletes would not jump the vaccine queue. Whether he will be vaccinated ahead of the Tokyo Olympics is the No. 1 question people ask Canada rugby sevens player Pat Kay of Duncan. “That is the main concern of the people I know,” said the Cowichan Secondary graduate, training in Langford for the Tokyo Summer Games. “So this is great news.”