A trio of national gold medallists is the latest chapter in the growing resumé for a Foothills County family.
Megan, Sarah and Sofia Pelkey all took home a gold medal in at least one discipline at the 2022 Canadian Water Ski Championships at Shalom Park in Leduc County, from Aug. 2-7.
“It’s really nice, I’m really proud of how hard they work and it’s really good seeing my younger siblings excel too,” said Megan, 16. “That makes me really happy.”
This year’s event marked the first time the three sisters have competed on the national stage at the same time.
“As a parent, it’s just watching my three kids compete and watching all of their hard work pay off because they did well,” said proud mom Sandra Pelkey.
Megan, a Pan American champion last year in Mexico and multi-time national medallist, added to her collection with a medal of every colour and the overall title at last week’s event.
In the U17 girls division, Pelkey won gold in trick, silver in slalom and bronze in jump.
“I was working on doing my tricks cleanly and smoothly and I think that helped,” Megan said. “It was my first tournament where I was consistent in all of the events.
“I was just really happy to accomplish that.”
The 16-year-old then earned the opportunity to compete in the women’s open division, against adult competitors.
She more than held her own with a bronze in trick and silver medal in the overall standings.
“I was not expecting to ski in open this tournament,” she said. “When I found out that I was able to ski in open I thought that was really cool to be able to ski with the pros and be in competition almost as them.
“They put so much effort and time into the sport and that’s why they’re the best.”
Sarah, 13, won gold in the U14 girls slalom event – the only discipline she competed in.
“I really like that event, I just love skiing in the slalom course and going through it,” she said. “I find it really fun to move through the course.”
Sofia made significant waves in the U12 ranks, winning gold in trick, jump and overall.
The 10-year-old attributed her success in the water to practice time and having a positive attitude.
“It went really well and I had a lot of fun meeting a bunch of new people and it was a really good experience,” she said.
Skiing is a four-season endeavour for the Pelkey sisters.
In addition to their exploits on the water, their sister Rebecca Pelkey is an accomplished downhill skier and won silver at the Alpine U16 Canadian National Championships in the spring.
