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Team Yukon cleans up at 55+ Games

Yukoners raked in medals, accomplishments and good times at the 2016 Canada 55+ Games in Brampton, Ont., last week.
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Yukoners raked in medals, accomplishments and good times at the 2016 Canada 55+ Games in Brampton, Ont., last week.

So much so, they may have made some other teams jealous.

“So many people wanted to be part of our team, even saying they would like to just move to the Yukon,” said Yukon track star Brenda Dion.

Yukon’s team of 98 participants won 63 medals with 28 gold, 25 silver and 10 bronze at the biennial Games.

To put that in perspective, Yukon collected 64.5 medals at the 2014 Games with 30 more athletes on the team. (Half medals were awarded in the event of a tie.)

The bulk of Yukon’s medals last week came in athletics with 48 won by 15 competitors.

Dion was Yukon’s most decorated with six gold.

“The 55+ Games were fabulous,” said Dion in an email to the News. “These Games are all about friendships and participation and congratulating people on their efforts to remain active in mind and body as we age. This is my third 55+ Games and I always come away inspired watching people older than me accomplish so much. There are many heroes.”

Team Yukon members won hardware in nine of the 18 sports and activities in which they competed.

The medals are now traveling throughout the territory on the necks of athletes, some in their 80s and older.

Old Crow’s Allan Benjamin won five medals — three gold and two silver — in running events on the track.

Tagish’s Ida Calmegane — one of 10 athletes over 80 on the team — brought home a bronze in five-pin bowling.

Whitehorse’s Betty Hebert, the oldest member of the team at 91, helped her team of Dale Gibson, Bob Roy and Jean Webster take bronze in carpet bowling.

That’s just six of the team’s 41 medalists.

“I think everyone enjoyed themselves,” said Marg White, Team Yukon co-chef de mission. “They had lots of fun and were very enthusiastic. People were out and about and meeting old friends they hadn’t seen in a long time, which was pretty great.”

Contact Tom Patrick at

tomp@yukon-news.com

Medals:

Athletics

Allan Benjamin – gold (400m)

Allan Benjamin – silver (100m)

Allan Benjamin – gold (800m)

Allan Benjamin – gold (200m)

Allan Benjamin – silver (5km)

Dave Brekke – silver (1,000m predicted walk)

Bryan Craven – gold (1,500m)

Bryan Craven – silver (javelin)

Bryan Craven – silver (3,000m)

Bryan Craven – silver (800m)

Bryan Craven – silver (10km)

Brenda Dion – gold (50m)

Brenda Dion – gold (javelin)

Brenda Dion – gold (long jump)

Brenda Dion – gold (100m)

Brenda Dion – gold (10km)

Brenda Dion/Donna Jones – gold (4x100m relay)

John Hall – gold (50m)

John Hall – gold (100m)

John Hall – gold (long jump)

John Hall – gold (triple jump)

Naomi Hall – gold (javelin)

Naomi Hall – silver (discus)

Naomi Hall – gold (400m predicted walk)

Donna Jones – silver (400m)

Donna Jones – gold (long jump)

Donna Jones – gold (200m)

Donna Jones – silver (800m)

Dave Kalles – silver (1,500m)

Dave Kalles – gold (400m)

Dave Kalles – silver (3,000m)

Dave Kalles – silver (800m)

Hank Leenders – gold (javelin)

Rose Leenders – silver (50m)

Rose Leenders – gold (100m)

Rose Leenders – silver (400m predicted walk)

Karen Milligan – bronze (discus)

Karen Milligan – silver (shot put)

Pat Milligan – bronze (50m)

Pat Milligan – bronze (javelin)

Tom Parlee – silver (long jump)

Tom Parlee – silver (discus)

Tom Parlee – silver (shot put)

Sharyl Satchell – silver (50m)

Sharyl Satchell – silver (100m)

Don White – gold (1,500m)

Don White – gold (3,000m)

Don White – gold (10km)

Carpet bowling

Paul Dabbs/Heather McGeachy/Sandy Lansfield/Lorretta Warnsby – bronze (mixed)

Dale Gibson/Betty Hebert/Bob Roy/Jean Webster – bronze (mixed)

Curling

Gordon Zealand/Don Duncan/Bob Walker/Dale Enzenauer – bronze (men’s)

Darts

Gary Hewiit – gold (men’s singles)

Gary Hewitt – gold (men’s doubles)

Betty Sutton – silver (women’s doubles)

Five-pin bowling

Ida Calmegane – bronze (women’s singles)

Golf

Tom Anson – bronze (men’s low gross)

Lawn bowling

Bonnie Barber/Maureen Caley-Verdonk – silver (women’s doubles)

Arla Repka/Madeline Boyd – silver (women’s doubles)

Scrabble

Shirley Clark – gold (category C)

Jane Stayner – silver (category C)

Colleen Tyrner – gold (category A)

Swimming

Spence Hill – bronze (100m)

Spence Hill – bronze (50m)