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20 Oakville Beaver Weekend Sunday, June 11, 2000 Sports An O akvilk Beaver Feature Editor: NORM N ELSO N Phone:845-3824, ext 255 Fax:337-5567 E-maii.nnelson@haltonseanch.com m . -g M Last weekend,was a productive one for 17-year-old Iroquois Ridge high school student Tyson White as he competed in the Canadian high school rowing championships, winning gold in m en's lightweight and bronze in m en's heavyweight. Photo by Fred Loek He's Canadian high school champ By Kathy Yanchus SPECIAL TO THE BEAVER He's a rowing champ and a Princeton recruit. Does it get much better? Seventeen-year-old Tyson White topped his fellow competitors to row away with the Canadian Secondary School Rowing Association (CSSRA) men's senior 70kg (lightweight) single championship recently in St. Catharines. And then competing in the open, heavy weight class, he still managed to bring in brpnze against mostly heaver opposition. "I weighed in at 159.7 (cutoff weight for lightweight is 160) two days in a row which is really unusual," said Tyson who turns 18 next month. "I just wanted to race in both events." Racing conditions were "excellent, over cast with hardly any wind," as Tyson, in his final CSSRA race, tore along the Henley course, host to the world's best last summer. There's no time to savour his accomplish ments, however, as he is at the national team U-23 regatta in London this weekend. Rowers selected to this elite ensemble, com pete for Canada at the world championships in Croatia this summer. Tyson,however, really has his work cut out for him because the cut-off between light and heavy weight at the nationals is a little lower, at 155 pounds, and he just misses it, literally placing him among giants in the heavyweight category. "It will be pretty tough," he concedes. If Tyson doesn't make the team, however, the alternative is equally impressive and exciting. In mid-July, he heads to Princeton to join the Ivy League school's rowing team practicing alongside the American Olympic rowing team. `T hey're fast," chuckled Tyson. What a future. Short term goals for this bright young man include making Princeton's varsity rowing team while his long term goal is to participate in the 2004 Olympics in Athens. "My big goal is really just to have fun. It gets pretty intense but I enjoy what I'm doing." This is Tyson's 8th summer rowing, a sport the teen chose over hockey after coming up through the Oakville Rangers triple-A rep system and attending the Oakville Blades provincial junior A training camp. "I had to choose between the two and I just felt I fit better in this sport. Rowing is such an amazing sport." The rush when he hits the water, the adrenaline flow during competition, the con tinual fine tuning of stroke, all appealed to Tyson, an admitted competitor and "perfec tionist." Pursuing the sport at the competitive level, which he has done since Grade 9, is no easy task but Tyson has managed to balance his sport, schoolwork -- he fast-tracked through Iroquois Ridge High School -- high school hockey and work, and land at Princeton. With only a brief hiatus from rowing in August, Tyson's year round routine involves rising at 4:45 a.m. every morning to train at the Don Rowing Club in Mississauga. He's back at the club after school. "Some people think I'm insane," he chuckled. "And when you're racing, it hurts. You're not really that comfortable. I've heard this analogy before, it's the quest for the per fect stroke." Strawberry Shortcake McFlurry' Introducing McFlurry's newest flavour, Strawberry Shortcake. A taste explosion of strawberries and vanilla sugar wafers. It's a cool new way to satisfy your craving. But you better hurry, it's only here for a limited time. participating McDonald's Restaurants CMC M cD onald! R a a ta u ia n tao fC a n a d alim ited. F o rO taeidueive u a aof M cD o n a ld '! R astaufanti of C a n a d aL im ite da n dIt! Irancfttaet.