Twin takeover: N.L. teenagers headed to Canada Games for 2 sports

Eric and Evan Knight will compete nationally in soccer, track and field

CBC News Posted: Jul 28, 2017 7:28 PM NT, Last Updated: Jul 28, 2017 7:28 PM NT, http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...nada-games-1.4226690

To make the Canada Games team at the age of 16 is a great accomplishment. To do that in two different sports is downright impressive.

That's the feat of not one teenager from Newfoundland and Labrador, but two — oh, and they're twins.

'We have good chemistry since, you know, we're twins' - Eric Knight

Eric and Evan Knight, 16, are in Winnipeg for the 2017 Canada Games. They are on the same soccer team and are individually competing in track and field.

"I'm very excited. I've been preparing for this since November," Eric Knight told CBC News.

"I've been really excited to push myself to make it here."

The 50th annual Canada Games are taking place from July 28 to Aug. 13. The games feature 16 sports and with more than 4,000 athletes.

"I think we are the only twins that are going for two sports this year," Evan Knight said.

"So that's definitely a good feeling for sure."

'Very tough boys'

Both boys are on the Under 18 Canada Games soccer team. Head coach Andrew Murphy said the team had "no choice" but to take the talented twins.

"They're really close. They come to training all the time and they're really supportive of each other," he said.

"Sometimes one of them is on the bench and one of them is playing. And if it's Evan who is out there doing well, Eric's going crazy for him on the bench. So that's great. They push each other all the time."

Murphy also acknowledges the two can be competitive with each other and since they are younger than a lot of the other players on the team, they have to make up for it in other ways.

"Being smaller you have to be a little more tough, and they've got that," Murphy said.

"They've taken a lot of hard smacks over the last year. But they're very tough buys."

Twins Eric and Evan Knight are competing at the Canada Games in both soccer and track and field. (Zach Goudie/CBC)

On the soccer field, Eric and Evan can cover each other's postitions. Eric said he can anticipate where Evan will be.

"We have good chemistry since, you know, we're twins," Eric said. "It's kind of like I know where he all the time sometimes. Or that's how it feels."

"We also know we've got each other's back on the soccer field. On track, no matter what race it is, we still want to push each other and we hope that we both do well in the end, and it usually turns out that way," Evan added.

The Knight twins said preparing for the national competition has been a huge commitment.

"We just want to do what we need to do to help our team succeed in soccer," Evan said.

Eric said he has been training more for the 400 metre, while Evan has been focusing on the 1,500, but they've both been working on the 800-metre race.

"For track and field I hope to get a new personal best time … and with soccer, we hope to medal," Eric said.

"That'd be good, to come home with a medal. That'd be great."

With files from Zach Goudie

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