Harris to characterize Canada in rowing at Pan Am Video games

WELLINGTON COUNTY – Stephen Harris has been chosen to characterize Canada on the Pan Am Video games, which run from Oct. 20 to Nov. 5 in Santiago, Chile.

“That is my first time representing Canada at a multi-sport video games, so it’s a giant honour,” the 21-year-old Marden resident advised the Advertiser.

“I’m very excited and look ahead to competing.”

Harris has represented Canada earlier than within the U19 and U23 World Rowing Championships.

The U23 championships have been held in Bulgaria this previous July, and had over 750 athletes from 51 nations attend, in keeping with WorldRowing.com.

Harris additionally competed within the U23 championships in Italy in 2022 the place he gained a bronze medal, and the 2019 Junior World Championships in Tokyo.

On the Pan Am Video games, Harris will race within the males’s light-weight double and the combined eight, which is a brand new occasion for the Video games.

The choice course of for the Pan Am Video games was performed by Rowing Canada and the Nationwide Sporting Group for Canada, in keeping with Harris.

“They invited a few of the high athletes that they felt could be a great match. And we did some choice occasions to finalize the attendance,” he mentioned.

Rowing background

Harris attended John F. Ross Collegiate Vocational Institute and has been rowing since his Grade 9 yr of highschool.

He grew to become a member of the Guelph Rowing Membership in 2016, which he’s nonetheless a part of right this moment. He now attends Brock College, the place he’s learning economics, and can be on the rowing workforce.

Harris mentioned he has spent a pair years getting his college workforce on the senior nationwide workforce degree.

“My dad and mom truly met rowing at Western (College). So for me, it was at all times a sport I used to be going to get into,” mentioned Harris.

Together with travelling to Italy, Harris additionally gained three gold medals on the Canada Summer time Video games in 2022 – essentially the most medals of any rower from any province that yr.

Extra not too long ago (Sept. 28 to Oct. 1) Harris gained the senior Nationwide Light-weight title in Duncan, BC.

When he isn’t in class, Harris rows for the nationwide workforce and he trains in Vancouver. Nevertheless, he plans to maneuver again to Guelph/Eramosa for the rest of the autumn season for coaching.

The Pan Am Video games will mark the subsequent transfer in his rowing profession, and people wanting to observe Harris on the Pan Am Video games can achieve this by downloading the “Pan Am Sports activities Channel” app from smartphone app shops or watch at panamsportschannel.org/primary.

The hyperlink to the video games might be discovered at santiago2023.org.