Submitted Photo Bottineau Winter Park Ski Team Coach Boyd Sivertson and athletes Camille Deschamp and Tyler Bernstein take part in the Parade of Athletes during the opening ceremony March 9 of the U14 Junior Championships in Steamboat Springs, Colo.

BOTTINEAU – Bottineau Winter Park Ski Team athletes returned from the Junior Championships in Colorado with some honors and some disappointments.

The coronavirus precautions at the end of the championships led to the cancellation of one of U14 category skier Camille Deschamp’s strongest races, but she also earned a podium spot in finishing eighth in the Slalom race. She is believed to be the first North Dakota girl to finish in the top 10 in a Championships race.

About 100 male and 100 female athletes competed in each the U14 and U16 categories. The top 15 finishers in each the U14 and U16 events, which featured top skiers from the Central and Rocky Mountain divisions, advance to national competition.

Camille, 13, and Tyler Bernstein, 13, represented the BWP Ski Team at the Junior Championships in the U14 category. Gabriel Deschamp, 15, represented the club in the U16 category.

Camille finished 13th in the Super-G. She had trouble with the slope conditions and fell in a couple of races, which can a consequence for skiers who race hard on unknown snow.

The last event, the Dual Slalom, in which Camille was expected to excel, was canceled due to precautions related to the coronavirus. Both the boys and girls Dual Slaloms were canceled.

Camille had been selected based on performance and sportsmanship from among the U14 skiers to read the athlete’s creed during the opening ceremony. Opening ceremonies include a parade of athletes, torch lighting and speeches by former Olympians.

Camille also had been selected as one of five female U14 skiers to compete in the Can-Am event in Maine, which since has been canceled as a coronavirus precaution. Camille had finished first in the U14 category at the Central division competition in which she qualified for Junior Championships in Michigan.

At Junior Championships, Tyler finished 31st in his best races – the Super-G and Giant Slalom first run. He was 50th in the Giant Slalom second race and 63st in the Slalom.

Rocky Mountain division athletes have the advantage of familiarity with the altitude and mountain skiing in the Colorado venue and typically dominate in the top half of competitors. However, Bernstein finished among the top Central skiers in his races.

Gabriel Deschamp finished 15th in the Downhill, 23rd in the Slalom and 24th in Super Combined (Slalom and Super-G). Due to difficulty with the course in the Super-G, he finished 34th. He lost a ski and did not finish the Grand Slalom.

He was among top athletes in the race placement drawings because of his third-place finish at the Central competition. The top five athletes in each race from both Central and Rocky Mountain participate in a public draw to determine their starting slots as the first 10 skiers to compete. Deschamp participated in three of the four public draws.

The U16 Junior Championships were held March 2-8 in Winter Park, Colo. The U14 Championships were in Steamboat Springs, Colo., from March 9-14.

Due to coronavirus, the ski season now has ended for the ski club. Bottineau Winter Park closed for the season Saturday.