Darren Campbell
Northern News Services

Inuvik (Feb 11/02) - An Inuvik speed skater's dream of competing at the Arctic Winter Games is being decided in the boardroom, not on the ice.

An appeal has been filed on behalf of Chris Lennie by his coach Karen Polakoff after he failed to make the NWT team at territorial trials held in Yellowknife, Feb. 1-2.

The appeal centres on a decision by trials officials to hold a re-race of a 1,500-metre race where Lennie and Yellowknife Skater Ryan McGreish disqualified themselves after losing track of their laps during the race.

The skaters were vying for the fourth and final spot on the team in the junior boys category.

Based on both skaters point totals, Lennie made the team if the original 1,500 race results had been included. However, after McGreish's father, Lee, protested what happened, trial officials decided to hold a re-race the next day.

In that race, Ryan finished ahead of Lennie and made the team instead because he had more points. Lennie said he is not happy with how the situation was handled.

"I think it was a rip-off," said the 17-year-old. "I've never heard of re-racing a race because someone got disqualified."

This is the third time Lennie has tried to qualify for the Arctic Winter Games.

"I've trained since November, did extra running, lifted weights. I really, really wanted to go," said Lennie.

Lee McGreish, who said neither he nor his son had been told about the appeal when contacted Feb. 8, said he protested the result of the original race because the officials had made a mistake.

"My position was the lap counters had lost count," said McGreish, who is on the board of directors for Speed Skating Canada. "You don't want the damn thing decided by an official's fault."

The mistake Lennie and McGreish made in the original 1,500 was they thought they had finished the race and then skated inside the markers that circle the race track.

Any competitor that skates inside those markers is disqualified. However, McGreish said the skaters are taught to rely on lap counters to let them know how many laps they have left in a race.

The NWT Speed Skating Association is handling the appeal. However, association vice-president Joan Irwin said she isn't sure when it will take place because she is still gathering information.

But with the Games a month away, Irwin said the appeal will be held as soon as possible.

"We have skaters whose hopes and aspirations are resting on this," said Irwin. "This is the motivation to get this done."