Connor Taras
The first time Connor Taras took paddling lessons he wasn’t exactly enamoured with the sport.
“I was 13 or 14 at the time and did one of the fall programs for canoeing and didn’t like it. I figured I would never be back. But next summer I switched to the kayak and made huge improvements over the summer and have stuck with it since then. What brought me back, wasn’t switching boats but I really enjoyed the atmosphere of the club, so I gave it another shot.”
Currently paddling for the Banook Club in Dartmouth, Taras started at the Cheema Club in Waverley which included Olympians Karen Furneaux and Richard Dalton. Their dedication and hard work showed Taras that he also had the potential to one day reach the top in the sport.
It was a wise decision by Taras to pursue the sport. He has been a national team member since 2006 and is steadily climbing up the national rankings in men’s kayak, a deep event in Canada which includes superstar Adam Van Koeverden.
After a transitional 2009 season, Taras appears back on the warpath in 2010. He surprised himself with a third place finish in the men’s K-1 200-metre at the first of two national team trials. The 200 is a new event for him this season and he wasn’t even sure if he would race it at nationals.
He grabbed a spot on the Canadian team for the World Cup events in Europe. The highlight overseas was a bronze medal in the men’s relay, an official world championship event, at the World Cup stop in Duisburg, Germany.
Taras is no stranger to international competition. He raced at five World Cups the previous two seasons, won a silver medal in the
K-2 500 at the 2007 world junior championships and in 2006 collected a boatload of medals at European junior meets as well
as the Pan Am Championships.
Connor comes from an athletic family. His father Phillip played junior hockey and provincial level rugby, and his mother Nancy competed in the Canada Games in diving.
He currently studies business at Mount St. Vincent University in Halifax.
Contact Lorraine Lafreniere at CKC to add your name to the growing list llafreniere@canoekayak.ca
