Competition has ended for Cowichan's eight athletes who participated at the 2025 Canada Summer Games in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, from Aug. 8 to Aug. 25. Among their achievements were three gold medals, one silver, one bronze, and memories to last a lifetime.
The region's eight athletes were among the 500 athletes, coaches and support staff B.C. sent to this year’s Canada Summer Games. The Games are held every two years, alternating between winter and summer, and serve as a key step in the development of Canada’s amateur athletes.
Rugby Sevens
Rafielle Barrack, 17, and Lily McCluskey, 17, both from Duncan, and Emma Narraway, 16, from Mill Bay, won U18 girls Rugby 7s gold with Team B.C. It was the team's second consecutive Canada Summer Games victory.
Jonty Nicholas, 19, of Shawnigan Lake, represented B.C. in boys Rugby 7s, earning silver with the province's U20 squad.
Both teams went undefeated to reach the finals, where they each faced Team Ontario.
The girls came back from a 10-0 deficit, scoring four unanswered tries to win 22-10. Narraway’s performance stood out — she scored two tries in the comeback win.
The boys lost 17-12 on the final play of the game, taking home silver.
Baseball (men’s)
Rhys Whiteford, 17, of Duncan, played catcher and first base for Team B.C.’s baseball team, which beat Team Quebec 3-2 in the gold medal game on Aug. 16. Whiteford went two-for-six at the plate during the tournament.
Box Lacrosse (women’s)
Rylee Wing, 16, of Ladysmith, represented B.C. in box lacrosse. Her team gave up just nine goals across four undefeated round-robin games before beating New Brunswick 13-1 in the quarterfinals. Wing scored the game-winning goal.
They went on to defeat Nova Scotia 7-1 in the semifinal, then prevailed 4-2 over Team Alberta in the final to claim gold.
Soccer (men’s)
Will Edgson, 17, of Mill Bay, played for Team B.C.'s men's soccer squad. The team defeated Saskatchewan and Ontario in group play, advancing to the semifinal against Alberta.
After a 1-1 draw, B.C. fell 4-3 on penalty kicks, moving on to the bronze medal match against Nova Scotia. There, they bounced back with a 4-0 win to secure a medal.
Swimming (men’s)
Colton Gonzales, 16, of Ladysmith, competed in six events with Team B.C.’s swim team. He won gold with his relay team and his top individual finish was sixth place in the 100-metre backstroke.
He also raced in the 50-metre freestyle (24th), 100-metre freestyle (25th), 50-metre backstroke (seventh), 200-metre backstroke (18th), and the 3,000-metre open water event (14th).
