Friday, July 15, 2016 brooklintowncrier.com 3 Semeniuk to Compete for World Title By Richard Bercuson Cyprus in July is hot, perfect for international beach volleyball competition, which is exactly where Brooklin High School student Carleigh Semeniuk will be July 27-31 at the site of the World U19 championship tournament. Semeniuk and her partner Brooke Kucab of Pickering will represent Canada. It began in elementary school with a phys. ed. teacher who introduced Semeniuk to volleyball. Already a soccer player and karate enthusiast, Semeniuk took to the sport immediately, playing court volleyball until just a year ago when she switched to the beach version. "Beach gave me a chance to stretch myself a bit," she says. "That and get a better chance at a scholarship." It worked. After graduating from high school in a year, she'll be off to Tulane University in New Orleans on a full NCAA Division I scholarship. Tulane was ranked 14th in the U.S. in beach volleyball but jumped up the rankings from 18th in one year, a remarkable achievement. "It was because of the coach," Semeniuk says. "It's unheard of to make that much of a change in one season. I had a few schools talking to me but the Tulane coach was the closest to mine here, Dean Martin. It seemed like that would be the easiest transition for me. I give a lot of credit to Dean for helping me." In the meantime, she continues to train and compete most days at Toronto's Ashbridges Bay beach facility alongside the women's national team, a challenge she's welcomed. "They're more mature and experienced and certainly stronger so it makes the training better for me. I'm not crazy about the fitness part of it but I realize it will get me to my goal." This trip though isn't cheap. Her airfare alone is $2000. Since athletes at this level get little funding, she has a fundraising page where local businesses, family and friends can donate to defray the cost. You can help Carleigh at: gofundme.com/f4t4pjjg Her short term goal is, of course, a medal at the Cyprus Worlds where she admits nerves are creeping in. As for the long term, she has her sights on the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, just like fellow Brooklinite and champion cross country mountain biker Emily Batty. Emily Batty, Champion Mountain Biker, Olympics Bound By Richard Bercuson In this hockey-crazed country, athletes in most other sports train and perform in relative anonymity. This shouldn't diminish their remarkable dedication and accomplishments. Emily Batty of Brooklin, who is a breath away from being atop the world in her sport, is one of those. She grew up on a farm in Brooklin where her Dad, Rick, introduced her to biking. It wasn't long before the determined young lady began winning - a lot. Last summer, she captured gold at Toronto's Pan Am Games and was fourth in the 2014 World Cup standings. Today, at 28, in a sport dominated by the French and Swiss, she ranks among the 10 best cross country mountain bikers in the world. Her reward is to be one of two Canadian women to compete in the Rio Olympics next month. On the World Cup's six race circuit, with four of the races now completed, she's within reach of a podium position, sitting in fourth spot as of this publication. Her coach (and husband), Adam Morka has been training her since 2009. Once longlisted himself for the 2012 London Games in the sport, Morka says Emily is an underdog going into the Games. "Strategically, that's actually a good position for her to be in," he says. The lead up to the Olympics is exhausting. She was home in Brooklin earlier in the week after World Cup race #4 in Switzerland. She headed to Baie St. Paul in Quebec for the nationals later in the week before going to Boulder, Colorado, for three weeks of altitude training. "A lot of athletes are doing that these days," Morka says. "Rio is at sea level but Boulder is at 5500 feet and is hot in the summer. You can climb (on the bike) to 9000 feet and the terrain is perfect for training. At that level, it's great for the metabolism." Emily will then travel to Mont Ste. Anne, Quebec, for World Cup Race #5 before a couple of weeks in Barrie's Horseshoe Valley where the Canadian team will be staged. Then it's off to Rio. Following the Olympics - yes, there's more! - Emily will be in Andorra, the tiny country nestled between France and Spain, for the final World Cup race. After that... "She comes home for a rest," says Morka. "It's all pretty stressful and so a forced rest is tough. We have to get her to just sit around and do nothing." Which won't last long because they do have their sights set on the 2020 Tokyo Games. Given that elite female mountain bikers race well into their 30s and some beyond, her prospects are good. Fans wishing to know more about Emily and her accomplishments should see her videos posted at emilybatty.com. In particular, the one under her bio entitled "The beginnings of a professional mountain biker" is a must-see. To follow the Olympics event online, go to https:// www.rio2016.com/en/cycling-mountain-bike. Photo by by Tim Semeniuk Carleigh digs out a ball while in training Emily displays her bronze medal at the recent World Championships photo courtesy of Adam Morka