Next Stop Beijing; Zelinka named top female athlete.
The Calgary Herald

The student loan wouldn’t be so onerous now. But at this point, Jessica Zelinka still thinks post-graduate studies pale in comparison to that five-ring circus.

Zelinka, the University of Calgary track superstar, was named Canadian Interuniversity Sport’s top female athlete for the 2006-07 season at the 15th annual Borden Ladner Gervais Awards on Monday night at Epcor Centre’s Jack Singer Concert Hall.

Josh Howatson, a standout setter with the Langley, B.C.-based Trinity Western University Spartans men’s volleyball team, earned the nod as the CIS male athlete of the year. Both earn $10,000 scholarships. But Zelinka, a graduate of the U of C’s communication and culture program, is almost surely bound for the 2008 Summer Olympics at Beijing. She’s ranked No. 9 on the globe in heptathlon and pentathlon by the International Association Athletics Federation.

“I found school was a great balance with my training,” Zelinka, the native of London, Ont., was saying on April 10 when she picked up one of four female BLG Award nominations distributed nationwide. “Next year, I won’t have school, but it’ll be good—because Beijing will be an extreme focus of mine.”

Zelinka capped her fourth and final season as a Dino by helping the U of C win its first CIS women’s track and field championship since 1991. She’s the second Dino woman to earn the BLG honour in four years. Volleyball player Joanna Niemcewska stole the spotlight following the 2003-04 season. Nominees were chosen from the Canada West, Ontario, Quebec and Atlantic University Sport conferences.

The six other finalists were Eilish McConville (soccer, Queen’s University), Leanne Huck (soccer/track, Dalhousie University), Audrey Lacroix (swimming, University of Montreal), Patrick Donovan (football, Concordia University), Daryl Stephenson (football, University of Windsor), and Jeff Weiler (volleyball, Dalhousie).

Zelinka, 25, was named the U of C’s 2007 female athlete of the year—and CIS championship MVP—after nabbing five gold medals, and one silver, at McGill University in March, helping Doug Lamont’s Dino women to that long-awaited national title. Zelinka spent her rookie season at Western Ontario, and began competing at the U of C in 2002. She wrapped up her indoor varsity track career by snaring 17 CIS medals (13 gold, three silver, one bronze).

"Right now, my priority is to focus on track,” said Zelinka following the ceremony. “But that scholarship gives me security for afterwards, because a lot of Canadian athletes finish their athletic careers and go back into the real world, so it’s great that BLG provides that award for athletes to have that stability.”

Zelinka, a member of the Canadian national track team, is focusing in the near future on two European meets in Gotzis, Austria, and Arles, France, the Pan American Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in July and the IAAF championships in Osaka, Japan, from Aug. 25 through Sept. 2.

“I have always felt through the years, we have athletes that dreaming of the Olympics but not yet have won at the university level yet,” Zelinka’s coach, Les Gramantik, was saying earlier in the month. “So I always say, OK if you dominate here (at the university level) -- which she was—then there’s a chance that you can be very good at the world level. “I’ll tell you right now, it’ll be a long time—never say never—before anyone’s going to break her (CIS) pentathlon record or hurdle record. They’re world class performances.”

The 15th annual BLG Awards will be broadcast May 20 at 9 a.m. MT on TSN (Ch. 21)

Calgary coaches given $10,000 grants.
The Calgary Herald

Oshawa (Ontario), Wednesday, May 2, 2007 –Ten high performance coaches will receive $10,000 each for skill development through GM Canada’s Making Dreams Possible Program.  This represents the first phase of GM’s overall $1.2 million pledge to support Canadian athletes and their coaches as they prepare for future Olympic competitions.

Four local coaches have been awarded grants Wednesday through GM’s Making Dreams Possible program.

The four Calgary-based coaches—Tony Smith, Tanya Dubnicoff, Jan Bidrman and Kim Cousins—are among a list of 10 recipients announced in the first phase of the automaker’s $1.2-million pledge to support Canadian athletes and help their push toward the podium at the 2010 Vancouver/Whistler Olympics.

Smith is the head coach at the University of Calgary’s Gymnastics Centre, and helped develop ‘04 Olympic gold-medallist Kyle Shewfelt of Calgary. Dubnicoff, a former world-class cyclist, is now the Canadian cycling team’s national BMX coach. Bidrman coaches swimming star Mike Brown at the U of C Swimming Centre, and was Canada’s head coach during the ‘05 world championships and the ‘06 Commonwealth Games. Cousins coaches skeleton star Lindsay Alcock of Calgary, a constant medal threat on the World Cup circuit and an ‘06 Olympian.

“We are working closely with the Coaching Association of Canada (CAC) to help put more athletes on the podium than any other country in 2010” said Frank Trivieri, general director of marketing for General Motors of Canada.  “The Making Dreams Possible program is an important extension to our Olympic and Own the Podium sponsorships. Coaches play an integral and often understated role in growing and developing our Canadian athletes.  I would like to congratulate our ten recipients and we wish them all the best in their future training initiatives and competitions.”

GM has committed $5.2 million to help make Canadian athletes’ dreams possible.  Over the next four years, GM’s Making Dreams Possible program will provide ten annual grants of $10,000 each to high performance athletes and their coaches and 100 annual grants of $2,000 each to coaching development initiatives in local communities.  These grants will be used to fund special projects that develop the skills and abilities of elite and community level coaches.  GM Canada will also donate $4 million to Own the Podium 2010.

Alexandre Despatie wins third gold at Canada Cup Grand Prix.
Canadian Sport News

MONTREAL – Alexandre Despatie of Laval, Que., earned his third gold medal this weekend with a victory on men’s three-metre springboard on Sunday to conclude the Canada Cup FINA Grand Prix diving competition.

Chinese divers won the other three finals Sunday to finish the weekend atop the medal parade with five gold, three silver and a bronze.  Canada finished with three gold and two silver while the U.S., took two silver and two bronze.

‘’One of the toughest aspects of diving is to keep calm and stay focused the entire competition, and that part went well for me,’’ said Despatie, also the 10-metre tower and three-metre synchro winner (with Arturo Miranda), this weekend.  ‘’When Luo missed that fifth dive, I knew it was important for me to keep my composure.  In those situations there can be a tendency to let go and then you miss yourself.  I stayed focus and got on that board.’’

Meaghan Benfeito and Jennifer Abel, both of Montreal, added a silver on women’s three-metre synchro.  ‘’On the last dive we weren’t really thinking about the silver,’’ said Benfeito.  ‘’When we heard the reaction of the crowd that we were second it was pretty amazing.  We really did a great job. We have a similar technique on the springboard and we showed that today.’’

On women’s tower, Ruo Lin Chen led China to a 1-2 finish with Emilie Heymans of St-Lambert, Que., fourth and Roseline Filion of Laval fifth. Blythe Hartley of North Vancouver was fifth in the women’s three-metre final. Riley McCormick of Victoria and Nicholas Lachance of Montreal were fourth in the men’s 10-metre synchro.

Adam Van Koeverden and Mark Oldershaw paddle to gold for Canada at World Cup.
Canadian Sport News

ZAGREB, Croatia – Olympic champion Adam van Koeverden of Oakville, Ont., and Mark Oldershaw of Burlington, Ont., collected two of Canada’s six medals on Sunday to conclude the first stop on the canoe and kayak World Cup circuit.

In the C-1 1,000 metres, Oldershaw earned his first career World Cup win.  Thomas Hall of Pointe-Claire, Que., was second while Marian Ostreil of Slovakia was third. ‘’It was an awesome experience,’’ said Oldershaw, third Saturday in the 500.  ‘’Just to get a good race like that and a World Cup victory is a great boost of confidence for the rest of the summer.  I set a higher pace than everyone right from the start. I didn’t want to leave it to the very end.’’

In the men’s K-1 1,000, Van Koeverden earned his second gold in two days. Canada also collected a silver medal in the C-2 1,000 with Dmitri Joukovski and Richard Dalton, both of Halifax. 

Bronze medals were also won by Émilie Fournel of Lachine, Que., in the women’s K-1 1,000 and Richard Dober of Trois-Rivieres and Andrew Willows of Gananoque, Ont., in the K-2 200.  Dober and Willows took silver Saturday in the 500.

Montreal swimmer Benoit Huot breaks world record.

MONTREAL – Benoit Huot of Montreal broke the short course world record in the men’s 400-metre individual medley in the S10 disability category on Saturday at the Quebec provincial team swimming championships being held this weekend at the Claude-Robillard-Centre. 

Huot, a multiple Paralympic and world champion, clocked four minutes and 55.07 seconds demolishing the previous mark of 5:46.72 set in 1995. “It was pretty unexpected,” said Huot, the reigning world champion in the 200 IM. “This year we decided to add the 400 IM mainly to improve my 200 IM.  I actually hadn’t raced the 400 IM in about five years.  But I felt strong and comfortable.  What really helped was having a good training session this morning.”

Huot and seven other Canadian national team members will head to Europe for meets in Germany and the Czech Republic later this month.

SPORT ALBERTA LAUDS ALBERTA GOVERNMENT

“The Alberta Budget is good news for sport in this province and the increases over the past two years indicate we are moving in the right direction.  New program funding is critical and the commitment to sport and recreation infrastructure is both over due and significant” says Dale Henwood, President of Sport Alberta.

The budget presented on April 19, 2007 demonstrates a significant investment to the quality of life for Albertans through sport and recreation.  In particular Sport Alberta was pleased to see commitments such as $280 million over two years for the new Major Community Facilities Program to help construct and upgrade community facilities across the province; $98 million for capital grants to support major athletic facilities, including $80 million in new one-time funding; and $3 million more to support the Alberta Sport, Recreation, Parks & Wildlife Foundation. Questions that remain, however, are how much of the new $3 million being promised to the ASRPWF is dedicated to sport and the timeline and process to determine the new allocation of resources? The budget related to sport suggests that decisions will be made based on the Active Living Strategy and the Alberta Sport Plan which was originally penned in 2001.

Sport Alberta offers their assistance to addressing these questions and looks forward to working with Minister Goudreau, and sport and recreation administrators regarding the deployment of these new resources to meet the priorities of the sport community.

British Columbians can take comfort from Calgary’s real Olympic experience.

Vancouver, BC - The second volume of a report commissioned by the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games (VANOC) indicates that the lasting legacies of the 1988 Calgary Olympic Winter Games are as impressive as they are extensive, including a direct relationship to Canada’s record medal haul at the Torino 2006 Olympic Winter Games and an unprecedented engagement of children and youth in winter sport. Touching many aspects of the community, the legacies of the ‘88 Games include sport, education, culture, tourism, volunteerism, economic development and—perhaps most impressively—civic pride.

The Calgary report, which was released today at vancouver2010.com, is the second of three volumes of the Legacies of North American Olympic Winter Games report commissioned by VANOC.  The first volume (Lake Placid) was released last week, and the final volume (Salt Lake) and executive summary will be released on May 14.
 

“I found the report to be surprisingly thorough and accurate given that the event took place nearly 20 years ago. The citizens of British Columbia can use the real experience of Calgary to take comfort that the 2010 Games are capable of providing a huge economic impact, a lasting legacy of facilities and an opportunity for individuals to share the experience of a world class event at home,” said Frank King, former President and CEO of the Calgary ‘88 Olympic organizing committee.

“The Olympic Winter Games involve a complex set of management issues that must be carefully balanced between the citizens at large, three levels of government, dozens of participating National Olympic Committees, all the Winter Sports Federations and the local and world media and of course, the International Olympic Committee. A successful Games has been described as “a miracle of shared friendship”. Such Games can become an important social force in a world clearly seeking better ways of getting along. Much effort remains to be expended in the time remaining,” he added. “Looking forward, VANOC appears to be well on its way towards setting a new standard for successful Games,” King concluded.

“Nearly 20 years later, the 1988 Olympic Winter Games in Calgary continue to impact the development of high performance sport in Canada,” said Chris Rudge, Canadian Olympic Committee Chief Executive Officer.  “The legacy of world class facilities and a multi-million-dollar endowment fund has contributed significantly to Canada’s dramatic increase in podium results at the Olympic Winter Games over the years.”  

Among the many Games legacies for Calgary identified in the report are the following:  

•        The 1988 Olympic Winter Games turned a profit that fuelled an endowment fund of $70.5 million that is now worth $185 million and continues to develop sport in a multitude of ways.
•        The host province, Alberta, benefited from 70 percent of the economic effects of the 1988 Olympic Winter Games, including 27,400 person-years of employment.
•        Calgary’s Canada Olympic Park is the second largest tourist attraction in Alberta. It draws one million people each year, 300,000 of them skiers and snowboarders.
•        20 members of the Canadian Olympic team at the Olympic Winter Games in Torino were current or former members of the National Sport School in Calgary.
•        The Canadian medal count has grown every Olympic Winter Games since 1988, from five in Calgary to 24 in Torino.  At the Torino Games, more than 25 percent of the 196-member Canadian team was from Calgary and the surrounding area. Almost three-quarters of the medal winners in 2006 were either Albertan or had been training in the province at facilities that are a legacy of the 1988 Olympic Winter Games.
•        Calgary Olympic Winter Games volunteers still get together socially more than 18 years later. Many of them still own and wear their official volunteer jackets.
•        Some 1.5-million people a year attend events at the Pengrowth Saddledome, formerly the Olympic Saddledome and built for the 1988 Games. The building is also home to the Calgary Flames, the Western Hockey League Calgary Hitmen and the National Lacrosse League Roughnecks.
•        The Olympic Oval is still considered the fastest ice in the world and is home to Canada’s national speedskating team.
•        Close to 30,000 children, youth and adults participate in organized recreational programs at Canada Olympic Park every year.

VANOC commissioned the Legacies of North American Winter Games report believing the most appropriate model for understanding the potential legacies of the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games is the experiences of other Winter Games held within the North American context since 1980. The independently-written reports offer detailed look back on the experiences of previous North American Olympic Winter Games hosts.

Alberta Sports Hall of Fame and Museum Announces The 2007 Inductees.

Established in 1957, the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame and Museum is celebrating its 50th Anniversary as the province’s sports hall of fame and museum.  The Alberta Sports Hall of Fame and Museum pays tribute to those men and women who have made a lasting contribution to the cause of sports in Alberta, the nation, and the world through outstanding achievement or service. This includes athletes, coaches, administrators, and other contributors to sports.

It is the mission of the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame and Museum to extol and preserve the memory of their accomplishments.

We are proud to announce the 2007 Alberta Sport Hall of Fame Inductees.
Cassie Campbell - Hockey Athlete
Megan Delehanty - Rowing Athlete
Earl Ingarfield Sr. - Hockey Athlete
Curtis Myden - Swimming Athlete
Eldon C. Godfrey - Diving Builder
B.J. Seaman, D.K. Seaman, Harley Hotchkiss - Hockey Builders
Lorna Snow - Swimming Builder - Sports for the Blind (and former instructor in the Department of Physical Education and Recreation)
Edmonton Eskimo Football Teams 1954, 55, 56 - Football
Medicine Hat Tigers 1987, 1988 - Hockey
John F Mayell - Multisport Builder - Pioneer Award
Robert MacDermott - Golf - Achievement Award
Wes Montgomery - Sports Broadcaster/Writer/Radio Announcer - Bell Memorial Award

The Inductees will be honoured at a banquet on Friday, June 1st, 2007 at the Capri Centre, Red Deer.  The banquet is an opportunity to meet this year’s Inductees as well as many of our Honoured Member Alumni.

Own the Podium announces targeted and focused approach to Canada’s Games in 2010 For immediate release.
May 4, 2007

(Calgary, AB)  Having just completed an intensive review of Canada’s National sport organizations’ winter programs and performances for the past winter season, Own the Podium 2010 announced today the next steps toward achieving the goal of being the top nation at the 2010 Olympic Games and to place in the top three nations at the Paralympic Games.

“This is a critical time in our planning that requires a more strategic targeting of sports and athletes,” said Roger Jackson, CEO of Own the Podium 2010.  “The outstanding achievements from Canadian winter athletes last season have provided us with a clear indication of the focus and direction that will be required to achieve the highest standard of performance on the world stage.  We will continue to do everything we can to give Olympic and Paralympic medal hopefuls the edge that they need to represent Canada to the best of their ability in 2010.”

With two full competitive winter seasons remaining before Canada’s Games in February and March of 2010, Own the Podium 2010 is increasing its targeted approach and support to National Sport Organizations (NSO’s) who have demonstrated a high degree of probable medals in 2010.  These sports include Curling, Hockey, and Long Track and Short Track Speedskating, which collectively captured 18 World Championship medals in 2007.  Other World Championship medal winners this year included the sports of Alpine, Freestyle, Snowboard, Figure Skating and Bobsleigh.  Support will also be provided to Biathlon, Cross-country skiing, Skeleton, Luge and Ski cross.

A detailed backgrounder outlining OTP success stories to date can be found at www.ownthepodium2010.com, or click here.

Looking Ahead - Own the Podium’s Strategic Priorities for the 2007-2008 season and beyond are:
Technical Readiness
Athlete Programs
Canadian Sport Centres and Performance Enhancement Teams (PET)
Home Field Advantage
Research and Innovation
Top Secret
Performance Technology
NSO Organizational Readiness

Since 2005, the five-year, $110-million OTP initiative has had a fundamental and positive impact on the Canadian high performance winter sport system by providing support and services to National Sport Organizations, Canadian Sport Centres and over 600 Canadian winter athletes on an annual basis.  Despite a post-Olympic and Paralympic year which typically results in retirement for a number of high profile athletes, the 2006-2007 season saw Canada capture 135 World Cup medals and 26 World Championship podium performances, finishing second in the overall rankings to Germany. 

Reid starts on road back to Olympics.
Niagara Falls Review (ON)

One of the most important stretches of Charmaine Reid’s life started Tuesday in Singapore.
The Fort Erie badminton player started up the long road she hopes will lead to another Olympic appearance as she tries to qualify for the 2008 Summer Games in Beijing.

In the 365 days between May 1, 2007 and May 1, 2008, Reid will travel to 20 international badminton tournaments in 20 different countries with her doubles partner Fiona McKee. Reid is in Asia this week for the Singapore Open, which starts her year-long campaign. Next week she heads to Indonesia and then she is back to her training home in Calgary for the Pan American Championships May 15 to 19.

Reid is currently ranked second in the Pan American Zone for women’s singles and first in women’s doubles with McKee.“We will have to maintain our ranking in doubles and I’ll need to improve my ranking to No. 1 in singles for one year in order to qualify each event,” she said.

This is Reid’s third attempt at qualifying for the Olympic Games. In 2000 she thought she earned a spot, but politics at the top level of the sport kept her at home. Four years later she successfully qualified for the 2004 Games in Athens.“That was a dream come true for me,” she said.

The 34-year-old said the stress level goes up dramatically for athletes during the Olympic qualifying period, but she said it’s important to “handle it in stride.”“There really is no more room for error, knowing that each time out could make the difference as to whether or not I’m able to represent Canada at the next Olympics,” she said.“I have to realize my opponent is facing the same consequences as I am.”

Reid has now been partnered with the up-and-coming McKee for the past year.“I have also been coaching and guiding her at these tournaments. It would help to have a coach with us, but I think it also makes us work harder all around to achieve our results.”

Reid said she’s confident she’s playing at the level she needs to be at this point in the qualifying period. “I’m hitting hard and placing the shuttle around the court well,” she said. “I’m more confident in my play and I’m thinking more on the court.”

Reid will be home in Niagara in late July for her annual golf fundraiser. This year’s Charmaine Reid Celebrity Golf Tournament will be held at Hunters Pointe July 29.