PRAGELATAO, Italy – Thunder Bay’s Brooke Ailey was the top Canadian skier on Wednesday in the 10-kilometre interval start at the 2025 FISU World University Games in Italy.
Ailey finished 39th and teammate Sarah Cullinan, who trained with Big Thunder Nordic, crossed the finish line in 42nd place.
Ailey finished the race in 31:32.5, 3:23.8 behind gold medallist Izabela Marcisz of Poland. Cullinan, the fourth Canadian to complete the event, had a time of 31:54.7.
Italy’s Maria Boccardi was second, 2.9 seconds off the pace, and Switzerland’s Carla Wohler was third, 14.5 seconds behind Marcisz.
“It’s very exciting to be named to the FISU Games team alongside other Canadian student-athletes,” said Cullinan, in a release issued Thursday night.
“Representing Canada is always an honour, and showing that it’s possible to excel in academics and sport at a high level is an incredible opportunity.”
Lakehead’s Alexander Randall finished 73rd in the men’s competition, in a time of 27.26.5, 3:11.2 behind Norway’s Olaf Talmo, who topped the podium in a time of 24:21.0.
Finland’s Nico Bennert was second and Bulgaria’s Mario Matikanov was third. Xavier Normandin was the top Canadian, coming in 18th.
Ailey finished 27th in Friday's sprint qualification, while Cullinan placed 39th. Nicholas Randall was 12th in the men's event, just 4.40 seconds behind Finland's Markus Kasanen.
In men’s hockey, Lakehead’s Malte Hasselgren had a pair of assists, but Team Sweden came up short against Team Canada on Thursday, falling 8-4. The University of New Brunswick’s Benjamin Corbeil had two goals and an assist to pace Canada.
Hasselgren, a first-year forward with the Thunderwolves, has a goal and two assists in three games for Sweden, who are 1-2 at the event. Canada is 4-0. Sweden takes on South Korea on Friday.
