YORKTON – A Yorkton teen has brought home four silver medals from the North American Indigenous Games held in Nova Scotia July 15-23.
Elia Bolme, representing Team Saskatchewan, placed second in four kayak events including the U19 K1 200m, 1000m, 3000m and the 6000m.
"I feel like I did really well," said Bolme of her performance in an interview with Yorkton This Week.
On top of bringing home the four medals, Bolme competed in a U19 Mixed C2 6000m, where she and her team placed fourth.
The C2 6000m was mixed canoe race, something Bolme had never competed in before.
"I'm glad that I had the opportunity to do the marathon canoe race because I'm not actually a canoer — I haven't really canoed before — so doing that race I guess was the first time I ever raced in a canoe and we took fourth and it was a really close race," said Bolme.
"I really appreciated the opportunity that I had. It helped me open my eyes to a different aspect — a different sport — and I'm hoping to bring more canoeing to Yorkton and help introduce our athletes to it as well," added Bolme.
Bolme said she started paddling for Yorkton Canoe and Kayak in 2016 to compete in that year's Sask Summer Games.
Now, seven years later as a recent high school grad, Bolme said she's ready to shift her focus.
"I'm going to the University of Saskatchewan for engineering so I'm going to be extremely busy with that," said Bolme, adding, "I want to look into maybe joining the Saskatoon Kayak Club but I'm not planning on continuing to competitively paddle."
"I do love paddling — I love being on the water — I'm more focused on the coaching aspect of it now," said Bolme, "I'm looking into possibly taking over as Head Coach next year at the club here in Yorkton ... learning from Jess so I can hopefully run it by myself next year."
Though Yorkton Canoe and Kayak Club Head Coach Jessica Riley wasn't in attendance at NAIG, Bolme said that didn't stop her from being there for her.
"They didn't actually have a kayak coach that was going to NAIG so Jess was coaching me during the spring and summer and then when I was there she was texting me — she would give me a call after the race to ask how everything went, how I felt about it and then prepare me for my next race," said Bolme.
"I really enjoyed having her support and I really appreciated it," said Bolme, "she's supported me all through these last few years — she's been at almost all of my regattas — she's always been there cheering me on."
I’ve had the pleasure of coaching Elia since she was 11. She’s now a veteran at racing and in addition to local and provincial competitions, she has done well at the Sask Summer Games, then the Canada Summer Games and National Team Trials last year, and now NAIG. She’s balanced school work, good grades, lifeguarding, music lessons and a variety of other interests," said Riley in an e-mail with Yorkton This Week.
"She started coaching at YCKC a few years ago and has been able to incorporate what’s she’s learned into the sessions she runs which has made the rest of our racing team get better," said Riley, adding, "We are fortunate to have this amazing young lady as part of our team and we are so incredibly proud of her recent success at NAIG."
Bolme said YCKC will be holding a Developmental Regatta on August 19 where she will be helping out and making sure everything goes smoothly as well using it as an opportunity to gain more insight into the coaching aspects of the sport and the club.
"Learning from Jess so I can hopefully run it by myself next year," said Bolme.
As for attending NAIG, Bolme said it was an "amazing experience."
"There were over 5000 athletes there. It was just a great opportunity to see how I measured up to the competition — meet people — be able to enjoy the culture and learn more about the culture," said Bolme.
