Emily Caine is taking it one step at a time in the Canadian Modern Pentathlon championships.
Last year the 18-year-old from Red Deer placed second in the youth A division to one of the premier young competitors in the country — Melanie McCann of Parhill, Ont.
Saturday Caine ran away with the youth A title, easily outdistancing Khendyl Gluck of Maple Ridge, B.C.
“It’s been good,” she said after finishing the running and shooting portion of the competition, which also included fencing and swimming. The older athletes also include stadium jumping in their competition.
“You have to be 19 to ride, so that’s next year,” said Caine, who went into the running and shooting competition with a significant lead on Gluck.
“It was comfortable, but I don’t think I would have done anything different even if it would have been close,” said Caine, who had to shoot five targets with a air pistol, run a kilometre, shoot, run another kilometre, shoot and finish with another kilometre run.
“I know one thing I’m dead, which is a good thing,” she said with a laugh.
Caine got into the modern pentathlon while living in Crossfield and competing for the Airdrie swim team.
“Josh (Riker-Fox) who competed in the Olympics for Canada, was swimming with the same club and he talked to my parents about me getting into the sport and my mom asked if I wanted to try it and rest is history,” Caine explained.
Caine also ran some at high school and did ride, but wasn’t into fencing and shooting, which ironically is now her two strongest events.
She started fencing in Calgary and once she moved to Red Deer in 2007 she joined the Red Deer Fencing Club, competing in epee. She’s also a member of the Red Deer Air Pistol team, which was evident Saturday as she nailed all five of her shots on the final rotation after running for two kilometres.
“My shooting is solid,” she said. “In fact my sister (Sarah) and I went to Guatemala earlier this year to try to qualify for the Junior Olympics.”
The Notre Dame grad will move up to the junior ranks in modern pentathlon next year, but isn’t sure how much she’ll compete.
“I plan on attending Red Deer College and will likely take a year off and not spend as much time training as I would need to,” she said.
“I may not attend all the big meets until I get back into it seriously. But I’ll still focus on the fencing, shooting and riding.”
Caine, who will take either a bachelor of arts and English of just a bachelor of arts at RDC, will compete in the relay portion of the competition today.
The fencing goes at Grandview Elementary school from 7-11 a.m. with the swimming at the Red Deer Recreation Centre outdoor pool from 11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. The run and shoot is set for 1-3 p.m. at the River Bend Biathlon track.
l Karis Langvand, who is one of the top young fencers in the country, was in the youth A division, but only competed in fencing because of sore knees . . . David Coates was the only competitor in the master’s men’s division and didn’t compete in the riding while Deb Langvand, who was in the master’s women, competed only in swimming.
Individual results weren’t available until today.
drode@www.reddeeradvocate.com