Canada in the Worldloppet Ski Federation
Canada’s Worldloppet race is the Gatineau Loppet, originally known as the Rivière Rouge. It was started in 1979 and was a founding member of the World Loppet League. There have been several name changes since Rivière Rouge: it was the Gatineau 55, then the Keskinada Loppet and since 2009 it has been the Gatineau Loppet.
The race begins in Gatineau, QC and the entire 51 km route is in Gatineau Park, near Ottawa. The race is held on a Saturday and Sunday, with one day being the classic race and the other being the freestyle or skating technique (which is considered to be the premier event).
Canadian male winners of the freestyle technique race include Pierre Harvey (1989), Chris Blanchard (1994), Robin McKeever (2000, 2010) Karl Saidla (2002), David Zylberberg (2006), Stephen Hart (2007), and Ivan Babikov (2008).
Canadian female winners of the freestyle technique race include Louise Sander (1979), Marie-Andrée Masson (1983), Angela Schmidt (1985), Monique Waterreus (1987), Jane Vincent (1988), Isabelle Dube (1992, 1993), Nancy Dassie (1997), Tasha Betcherman (2001), Tara Whitten (2004), Dasha Gaiazova (2006), Brooke Gosling (2007), Milaine Theriault (2008), Megan McTavish (2009, 2010), and Amanda Ammar (2012)
Reference: Worldloppet – 30 years of skiing around the world (published 2007 – Estonia)
Gatineau Loppet website www.gatineauloppet.com
www.sportstats.ca