Taggart-Cox shaves two seconds off best 500m time in heats; places 3rd in D-final

A Marsh Lake speed skater was the sole Yukoner to compete at a meet at the Olympic Oval in Calgary last weekend.

Micah Taggart-Cox finished ninth in his age group after earning 170 points over three races.

Competing in a field of 12 14-year-old boys, Taggart-Cox managed a third place in the D-final of the 1,000m, for 35 points.

He was also third in the D-final of the 500m, racing to a personal best time of 47.36 in the heats and picking up 44 points.

In his best races, Taggart-Cox placed fourth in the 1,500m A-final, with a time of 2:55.398 to earn 91 points.

It was a difficult competition to skate at, as all the participants, no matter their age, raced together. The results were separated on paper for the awards.

Nearly 60 international male skaters took part. They represented Canada, the United States and Columbia.

A member of the Whitehorse Rapids Speed Skating Club, Taggart-Cox has been racing in his first year as a junior on the Western Elite Speed Skating Circuit.

In January he raced at the second event of the series in Richmond, B.C. and placed 10th out of 16 in his junior boys category.

In the summer, Taggart-Cox also trains and races in road biking.