Mellisa Hollingsworth-Richards (CP)

Canada’s Hollingsworth-Richards wins skeleton gold.
(CBC.CA News)

Not even an equipment malfunction could stop Canada’s Mellisa Hollingsworth-Richards from capturing gold at the season-opening skeleton World Cup in Calgary on Wednesday. Hollingsworth-Richards, a 25-year-old native of Eckville, Alta., had a two-run time of one minute 56.11 seconds for her first World Cup win and fourth podium finish of her career.

The victory was even more remarkable as the Canadian was forced to slide down the Olympic Park course half blind after the hood of her race suit slipped down over eyes after the fourth corner of the opening run. “It was like I had a patch over one eye and I really had to calm myself down,” she said. “I told myself that I’ve slid on this track a thousand times and to just feel my way through it. I didn’t think I had any chance of being number one, but I just let it all out.”

The momentary foul up ultimately didn’t hurt Hollingsworth-Richards as she finished 0.75 seconds over her nearest competitor.
Switzerland’s Maya Pedersen, the 2005 world champion, was second while Katie Uhlaender of the United States was third. “It took me 10 years to finally do this,” said a teary-eyed Hollingsworth-Richards after jumping into her teammates arms in the finish area. “I don’t think I have completely digested this yet, but it is absolutely awesome. I set goals this year to win multiple races, and I wanted to get my first in Calgary.”

Canadian champion and former World Cup titleholder Lindsay Alcock of Calgary was fifth. Deanna Panting of Winnipeg was ninth and Michelle Kelly of Fort St. John, B.C., was 17th.

Canada is eligible to send two female athletes to compete in skeleton at the 2006 Torino Winter Games in February. Alcock and Kelly were Canada’s representatives at the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics, where Alcock placed sixth.
Hollingsworth-Richards, who recently married Canadian saddlebronc rider Billy Richards, needs one more top-six finish to be eligible for the Canadian Olympic team. “I’m completely focused on making it to Torino and this is a great start to reaching that goal,” she said.

Jeff Pain of Canada slid to a third place finish on Thursday in the men's skeleton event. Duff Gibson of Calgary, the 2004 world champion, finished fourth while Paul Boehm of Calgary was 13th.

The 34-year-old Pain, the overall World Cup titleholder and world champion from last season, was pleased with his performance after battling a cold for 12 days.
"I did my best with what I had today," said Pain, a resident of Calgary. "Physically I wasn't quite where I wanted to be ... but there's nothing wrong with a podium performance against these amazing sliders. Success early on is very important."

Cindy Klassen (CP)

Canuck blazes to world record: Klassen sets 3,000 mark in World Cup.
(The Calgary Herald - Lauren MacGillivray)

It was difficult to see Cindy Klassen's face as she glided past the Olympic Oval bleachers, other than when she gave a couple short waves to the crowd.

Mostly, she was hunched over and sucking wind after a world-record performance in the women's 3,000 metres, capturing gold in the first long-track speed skating World Cup of the season. "I was very tired. I felt pretty sick, actually," chuckled the 26-year-old after trumping the old mark by nearly two seconds.

"Even at the end of the race in my last lap, my coach was yelling, 'Keep the tempo up!' And in my mind I was kind of screaming, 'I can't keep it up! I'm too tired, I can't get the tempo anymore.' So I was pretty bagged at the end."

Claudia Pechstein finished second and Anni Friesinger was third while fellow Canadian Kristina Groves placed fourth. Clughes was eighth.

Canada smashed another world record by almost seven seconds in men's team pursuit, guaranteeing itself an Olympic berth. Arne Dankers, Steven Elm and Denny Morrison pulled off an upset, beating two Netherlands teams -- one that included the previous world record holders. "I'm super surprised, I didn't expect it," said Dankers, a 25-year-old Calgary resident. "I think it's because we got home-ice advantage. All the World Cups are usually in Europe, so we've got a big advantage now that they have to come here finally."

On Sunday, Kristina Groves won a bronze medal in the women's 1,500 metres, while world records were lowered in the men's 5,000 and women's team pursuit. Anni Friesinger led Germany to a 1-2 finish in the 1,500 m in Calgary, while teammate Claudia Pechstein was second and Groves followed with a personal best for the bronze. Cindy Klassen of Winnipeg was fourth.

"A personal best is always what we strive for so I'm very happy with the showing," said Groves, an Ottawa native who shattered her PB by five seconds in Saturday's fourth-place showing in the 3,000. "I've been really able to hit a good rhythm in my races this year with big strong pushes and staying relaxed, particularly at the end of the race."

Germany captured gold in the women's 2,400 m pursuit, smashing the previous world record set by the Canadians last season. China was second and Germany 2 third. Canada 2 with Hughes, Simpson and Winnipeg's Shannon Rempel finished 10th while Canada 1 (Klassen, Groves and Nesbitt) 11th. "We changed things up with our teams and even though we had some problems near the end it was a good learning experience," said Groves.

Calgary's Arne Dankers shattered his own Canadian mark in the 5000m, placing 10th. "I'm very pleased with it," said Dankers. "I was consistent throughout. "I knew it would be very fast and I was actually pretty worried when I saw the times posted before I raced. I knew I just had to worry about my own race."

Coach Melody Davidson and Danielle Goyette (CP)

Canada thrashes U.S. in women's hockey event.
(CBC.CA News)

The Canadian women's hockey team served notice that they are the team to beat going into the 2006 Torino Winter Games with a 7-0 trouncing of the United States in a pre-Olympic hockey tournament Saturday.

Hayley Wickenheiser of Shaunavon, Sask., and Katie Weatherston of Thunder Bay, Ont., each scored two goals as Canada captured the gold medal at the Olympic test event held at the Palasport Olimpico, the venue for the men's and women's Olympic hockey competition in Turin, Italy.

It was one of the most lopsided scores in the rivalry between the two women's hockey superpowers. Canada and the U.S. have met in every world championship and Olympic final in the history of women's hockey. "Hopefully it does give the girls a good visual, a good feeling about this building and this facility and maybe that ache in their gut that they want to do it in February when everything is on the line," Canadian head coach Melody Davidson said.

Since losing the 2005 world championship in a shootout to the Americans, the Canadian women's hockey team has been on a roll, winning six straight exhibition games against their rivals this season.

Despite their recent success against the U.S., not far from Team Canada's minds is their record against the Americans leading up to the 2002 Olympics. Prior to those Salt Lake Games, Canada had lost eight straight to the U.S. before capturing Olympic gold. "There's three months left of preparation, we have a few things to work on and we know the Americans will be a better team then," St. Pierre said. "But as a team this week, we played amazingly. We were able to dominate the States two games in a row so we're very happy, but we don't take anything for granted."

Canada went undefeated at the pre-Olympic tournament, posting identical 3-1 victories over Sweden and Finland, before blanking the U.S. 5-0 in the final game of the round-robin Thursday.

Twenty-six players are currently on Team Canada's Olympic roster and that number will be trimmed to 20 prior to the Games. The Canadian team has been centralized in Calgary since Aug. 1, training and playing exhibition games against triple-A midget boys teams and other national women's teams to prepare for February's Olympics. It's the same formula they used for 1998 Nagano and 2002 Salt Lake Games.

Canada plays the U.S. again Nov. 27 in Columbus, Dec. 1 in Chicago, Dec. 30 in St. Paul, Minn., and Jan. 1 in Winnipeg.

Helen Upperton (CP)

Canada's Helen Upperton gets bronze in women's World Cup bobsleigh.
(CP Wire)

CALGARY (CP) _ The home track finally proved to be a charm for the Canadian women as Helen Upperton and Heather Moyse slid to their first ever World Cup podium appearance in women's bobsleigh action at Canada Olympic Park on Thursday night.

The 26-year-old Upperton of Calgary, along with 27-year-old brakeman Moyse, of Summerside, P.E.I., posted times good enough for the bronze medal in the women's bobsleigh event of the Visa Calgary Cup. ``I'm so excited to have done this in Calgary,'' said a beaming Upperton, who came from behind after sitting in fifth place after the first run. ``It's a great start to the season. I think I'm the luckiest pilot in Canada; I've got (brakemen) Heather Moyse and Kaillie Simundson pushing me this season.''

The gold-medal honours went to the German tandem of pilot Sandra Kiriasis and brakeman Anja Schneiderheinze. American tandem of Shauna Rohbock and Valerie Fleming won silver.

Other Canadian Results saw Lesa Mayes-Stringer of North Battleford, Sask. and Nadine Walker of Borden, Sask., finish 11th while Suzanne Gavine-Hlady of Barrie, Ont., and Jaime Cruickshank of Saskatoon finished 13th; and Amanada Stepenko of Edmonton and Jill Salus, of Coleman, Alta. were 20th.

Pierre Lueders had a shaky start to the World Cup season this weekend. The 35-year-old Edmonton native and his Canada 1 crew finished sixth Saturday in the opening event of the World Cup bobsleigh circuit in Calgary.

Leuders, the team pilot, and teammates Ken Kotyk of Rama, Sask., Morgan Alexander of Saskatoon, and Lascelles Brown of Jamaica posted a combined time for 6th place. erman pilot Andre Lange won while Todd Hayes of the United States was second and Russia's Alexandre Zoubko was third. Canada 2, led by pilot Serge Despres of Cocagne, N.B., finished 20th.

Lueders and brakeman Brown finished seventh in the two-man competition, also won by Lange, Friday night on the Canada Olympic Park track in Calgary. "I think I was just trying to force it a bit," said Lueders, a 1998 Olympic gold medallist in the two-man event. "The result is not what I was hoping for. After the result yesterday, I wanted to make amends."

"The guys worked hard to straighten out the timing," said Lueders of Saturday's effort. "We'll make some adjustments and start again next week."

Jeremy Wotherspoon with Coach Sean Ireland (CP)

Coaching Association of Canada announces its 2005 award winners.

OTTAWA - The Coaching Association of Canada announced today that Canadian volleyball mentor Charles Cardinal of Montreal and Susan Bauhart of Kelowna B.C. won its two individual awards for 2005.

Cardinal was honoured with the Geoff Gowan Award for his lifetime contribution to coaching development. Cardinal’s impact in the sport of volleyball is widespread at the provincial, national and international levels in a career that is nearing the 40-year mark. It started when he co-founded the Fédération de volley-ball du Québec in 1967. He then went on to serve as its technical director and as chair of its coaching and elite commissions. He spearheaded the coaching and development programs with Volleyball Canada through parts of four decades and was the men’s national team coach in 1970-71.

Bauhart is the recipient of the Investors Group National Volunteer Sport Administrator Award. For the past 18 years, Bauhart has made a significant leadership contribution to Canada’s swimming community. As an administrator, official, and volunteer leader her activities have spanned the spectrum of sport, from president of the swim club, to vice president of administration and president of Swim BC, to provincial representative on the board of directors of Swimming/Natation Canada, the national association, to now serving as an integral member of the Human Resources and Audit and Finance Committees.

The 35 recipients of the Petro-Canada Coaching Excellence Awards were also announced. They are presented to coaches whose athletes won medals over the past year at open world championships, Olympic Games, Special Olympics World Games, or Paralympic Games.

From Alberta the winners are: men’s national team hockey coach Marc Habscheid, women’s national team hockey coach Melody Davidson, bobsleigh coach Gerd Grimme, skeleton coach Teresa Schlachter, long track speed skating coaches Neal Marshall, Xiuli Wang and Sean Ireland, swimming coach Jan Bidrman and trampoline coach Brett Macauley – all of Calgary – as well as track and field coach Kevin Tyler of Edmonton; cross country skiing coach Dave Wood of Canmore and freestyle skiing coach Murray Cluff of Cochrane.

Amanda Overland (CP)

Canada wins silver in short-track relay.
(CBC.CA News)

Canada won the silver medal in the women's relay and two Canadian records were broken on Sunday in Bormio, Italy, to conclude the third stop on the short-track speed skating World Cup circuit.

In the women's 3,000-metre relay, South Korea won the gold medal. Canada with Alana Kraus of Abbotsford, B.C., Tania Vicent of Vercheres, Que., Kalyna Roberge of Ste-Etienne-de-Lauzon, Que., and Anouk Leblanc-Boucher of Montreal followed to beat the previous national mark set in Saturday's semifinal. Italy was third more than seven seconds behind Canada.

"Our relay was flying out there today," said Overland, who skated in Saturday's semi. "Our timing and exchanges were really on and we are showing we can really give the Koreans a run for their money."

In the women's 1,000, Overland was eliminated in the semifinals for eighth spot overall.
Vicent and Kraus were eliminated in the quarterfinals for 10th and 12th. "I'm feeling really good about my skating," said Overland, the Canadian overall champion. "To get that record right off the bat was really good for my confidence."

On the men's side, Mathieu Turcotte of Sherbrooke, Que., was fourth in the 1,000, fifth in the 3,000 and teamed up with Francois-Louis Tremblay of Montreal, Charles Hamelin of Ste-Julie, Que., and Jonathan Guilmette of Montreal for fourth in the 5,000 relay.

Eric Bedard of Ste-Thecle, Que., and Tremblay were eliminated in the 1,000 semifinal for sixth and seventh. The Canadian men posted three top-eight finish in all three individual Olympic distances (500, 1000 and 1500) this weekend.

If they can maintain that pace at next weekend's World Cup in the Netherlands, they'll have the maximum three spots in each of those races at the Torino Games in Italy. "As a team we certainly reached our objectives," said Turcotte. "It certainly puts us in a strong position to get all the possible spots for the Olympics next week."

Results from the competition will be combined with those from next week's World Cup meet to determine how many skaters from each country will qualify for the Turin Games in February. Each country can win up to three spots in each individual event while the top-eight countries in the relays earn berths.

New HBC Olympic Gear

Olympic wear for Canadian athletes unveiled.
(CBC.CA News)

Canada’s Olympic athletes will head to the 2006 Torino Winter Olympics in their familiar red and white colours but with a modern look.

Shearling hats and yoga pants highlight the official designs the 2006 Canadian Olympic team will wear in Turin, Italy. The Hudson’s Bay Co., Canada’s oldest department store, designed the line of clothing after it beat out Toronto-based Roots for the Olympic clothing contract. “It will remain to be seen which item (takes off with the public), “ said Suzanne Timmins, fashion director at HBC. “Right now we’ve gotten some feedback on our trapper hat that everyone seems to love – that’s the one people seem to be talking about the most.”

Canadian Olympic Committee members were also pleased with the bold fashion statement made by HBC. “These guys have really stepped up to the table quickly, there were many people who were somewhat enteral after all the excitement with our years with Roots,” said Chris Rudge, CEO of the Canadian Olympic Committee.

“with files from Canadian Press”