After an incredible performance this weekend at the Haywood NorAM World Jr. Trials in Callaghan Valley, B.C., five local skiers will be heading to Erzurum,Turkey to compete in the World Jr. Championships.

Emily Nishikawa, David Greer, Janelle Greer, Dahria Beatty and Knute Johnsgaard will bare the maple leaf at the event, which runs from Feb. 19-26.

Claude Chabot, Executive Director of the Whitehorse Cross Country Ski Club, said it is unprecedented for any club to have five athletes selected for the Worlds and a Whitehorse record.

The Whitehorse athletes captured 13 medals over the three-day qualifying event, including five gold. Beatty and Nishikawa each topped the podium twice while Greer came away with top honours in the 1.2 km sprint race.

"It was an amazing weekend,” said coach Alain Masson. "Coming into the weekend we had five athletes who demonstrated they had the potential to qualify for the Canadian world junior team, but only on paper.”

It didn't take long for the local athletes to prove that their early season results were not just a meager stroke of luck. The team burst onto the scene on the first day of event, capturing five medals in four races.

The skiers competed in a skiathlon race format, skiing several loops of a classic technique course, then switching skis and poles and moving onto a skate course.

The courses, using the loops developed for the Vancouver Olympics, were very technical and a great test of the skiers fitness and technique, said Chabot.

The skiers faced challenging weather on Saturday when they returned to Whistler Olympic Park, as heavy wet snow fell throughout the night and into the day.

"We saw a bit of everything from cold, blue skies, hard fast tracks, to dumping snow and soft conditions, it was a good mix of everything,” said Nishikawa.

Knute Johnsgaard said he felt completely spent after competing in Saturday's conditions, which caused him some grief as he had yet to solidify his spot on the national team at that point.

Heading into his last race, Johnsgaard was low on energy but knew he had to have a strong performance. After getting out to a strong start, he carried his momentum to a second place finish and tenth overall.

Johnsgaard ended up bringing home three silver medals and was the only athlete to be on the podium in all three races.

"It is a relief to be qualified for the world juniors which was one of my main goals this year,” he said. "It's also very exciting to be going to Turkey with so many of my Whitehorse teammates.”

It's a welcomed sense of relief for the team, but it won't last long. Masson said they will catch a few days of rest with some light training and then head back to B.C. to compete in the upcoming Western Championships to be held this weekend.

"The pressure is off for making the team but you always want to get the best performance at the actual event so they will now turn their focus to getting ready and achieving the best results,” he said.

The team has formatted their training schedule in hopes of peaking during the World Championships and they are beginning to see the results.

"My fitness in Dec. wasn't as good as it is now so I'm building into the season which is great,” said Nishikawa.

On Sunday, sunny skies and cooler temperatures greeted the skiers, as they competed in the classic technique distance races.

"We had great conditions Sunday which was a nice way to wrap things up,” said Masson.

Greer said her sense of relief from her earlier accomplishments carried her through the final day.

"After the sprint it was just such a relief when I crossed the line so the races the next day had no pressure,” she said. "I didn't have the best race but it didn't matter.”

Greer said she was excited for her teammates and feels a great sense of pride knowing that five Yukoners will be representing Canada.

"Now we just have to get prepared, get ready, and hope to do our best,” she said.