Eight gold medals cap unbeatable year for local triathlete.

It’s been quite a year for Peachland’s Brock Hoel. The 15-year-old swam, cycled and ran away with eight triathlon gold medals in 2016, winning multiple races — including the ITU Canadian Youth Elite National Championships — more than a minute ahead of the closest competitor, and he is now the Active Care Athlete of the Month.

Hoel, whose siblings Janae and Lincoln also compete in the sport, won four gold medals at the BC Summer Games in Abbotsford in July, competing in triathlon (500 metre swim, 10 km bike, 3 km run), aquathlon (a 300 metre swim and 1 km run), and two disciplines of duathlon.

He also won three out of four races on Triathlon BC’s Youth Elite Race Series, collecting victories at the Northshore Lands Triathlon, Vernon Triathlon, and Kelowna Apple Triathlon. The only reason he didn’t win the fourth was that it was unnecessary for him to race in it – the trifecta of wins already gave Hoel the provincial championship title without needing to compete in the final event of the series.

His stellar season was capped with the final gold medal at Nationals in Edmonton earlier this month.

Hoel attributes his success this year to his coaches: John Douglas of the Liquid Lightning Swim Club and Luke Way of Balance Point Racing.

“I have to give the credit to my coaches,” said Hoel of his impressive win frequency this season. “John’s been a great coach for my swimming, and Luke’s such a great coach too. All the training paid off.”

Hoel’s introduction to the sport of triathlon was at the age of seven in Red Deer where he won the first event he entered, despite the fact that his parents had taught him only how to transition between events the night before.

“It was a bit over my head, but something clicked when I got in the race and I won it,” Hoel recounted. “From then on, triathlon has been a passion.”

Beyond the strong support he receives from his parents and siblings, Active Care Athlete of the Month Hoel counts Simon Whitfield as one of his main inspirations in the sport, particularly after meeting him in Kelowna in 2009 when he was only 11 years old, just after Whitfield’s victory at that year’s Kelowna Apple Triathlon. Hoel got to shake hands and have a picture taken with his hero while chatting with him about each other’s races. Whitfield is a four-time Canadian Olympian who captured triathlon gold at the Sydney Olympics in 2000 and silver in Beijing in 2008.

“He’s always been an inspiration,” Hoel said. “I have a poster of him hanging in my room right now. He has always inspired me since then.”

Qualifying for the Olympics like Whitfield is one of Hoel’s long-term goals in his sport, but he’s taking that pursuit one step at a time. With his triathlon season now finished, and tenure in the Youth Elite division now complete, Hoel is now focused on tackling Junior Elite — a new age category that will have him taking on competitors up to three years older.

He also has his sights set on berths at the world championships, and 2018 Youth Olympic Games in Argentina.

For the time being, Hoel will continue to train through fall and winter – running and biking outside as long as the weather allows, before low temperatures force him inside until spring. In May, Hoel plans to make Kelowna’s Cherry Blossom Triathlon his first race of 2017.

The triathlon off-season also gives Active Care Athlete of the Month Hoel more time to focus on his schoolwork – which he does entirely online. The non-traditional approach to education has served the self-motivated triathlete well in terms of his training – it allows him to complete his work quickly so he can spend extra time running, biking, and swimming.

“It gives me a lot of flexibility, unlike a kid who has to be in school from 9 a.m. until 3:30 p.m.,” Hoel reasoned. “I can start my school at 9 a.m., but if I work through and don’t take all the breaks, I can finish by one o’clock. It gives me lots of time to go for runs, or get my training done earlier in the day.”

Honourable Mention: Kathy Hubble

Kathy Hubble, 47, won a gold medal at the World Master Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Championships in Las Vegas recently, capping a comeback from shoulder surgery two years ago.

A bronze medalist in judo at the Pan American Games in 1987, Hubble, returned to competitive martial arts after a 24-year absence and a year later won a gold medal at the International Judo Federation World Veterans Championships in Abu Dhabi.

After her shoulder surgery in 2014, Hubble took up jiu-jitsu at the Pacific Top Team Martial Arts clubs in Kelowna and Vernon.

“She exudes optimism, excitement and determination in everything she does,” notes her athlete-of-the-month nominator. “Her motto is ‘reach higher — what’s the worst that can happen’. She’s an inspiration to so many.”

Honourable Mention: Flyn Huber

Kelowna’s Flyn Huber came back from surgery on both knees in the off season and being in a wheelchair for six weeks, to earn five medals at the recent B.C. Summer Swim Club Championships in Coquitlam.

Huber, 11, operated on by former Olympic swimmer, Dr. Curtis Myden of Kelowna — due to genetic issues with his knees — swam to a Division 3 gold medal in both the 100-metre individual medley (1:14.81) and the 50 butterfly (32.70), while placing second in the 50 breaststroke in 40.72 seconds.

The Ogopogo Swim Club member also claimed a bronze in the provincial 100 freestyle final with a clocking of 1:06.53, while helping the Okanagan regional team — including Kale Jay, Rowan Trow and Justin Andruchow — to Div. 3 bronze in the 200 medley relay.

Leading up to the provincial meet, Huber had broken several Ogopogo age-group club records that had stood for many years.