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CANADIANS
POSTS THREE FINAL FOUR RESULTS AT U.S. OPEN BADMINTON
TOURNAMENT
ORANGE COUNTY, California (Canadian Sport News) - At
42-years-old Denyse Julien of Rouyn-Noranda,
Que., who trains out of Calgary, showed she's still
a threat at the international level after she reached
the semifinal this weekend at the U.S. Open badminton
tournament.
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Denyse Julien continues to
prove herself.
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Julien
and her mixed doubles partner Philippe Bourret
of Montreal lost their semifinal to Tony Gunawan,
a former Olympic champion in men's doubles, and
Etty Tantri of the U.S., 11-9, 11-8. The Americans
went on to win the gold medal with a victory in
the final. There was no match for third place.
The
Canadians squandered a 7-1 lead in the first game
and a 5-0 advantage in the second.
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"We
should have won at least one of those games,"
said Bourret. "It was good performance considering
it was only our second tournament together. They
were experienced opponents and capitalized on
our errors."
In
men's singles, qualifier Mike Beres of Ottawa
lost in the semifinal to Peter Gade of Denmark
15-6, 15-11. Gade, a world championship silver
medallist in 2001 back after a nine-month layoff
due to a knee injury, defeated compatriot and
number-two seed Peter Rasmussen 17-14, 15-7, 15-1
in the final.
In
women's doubles, Charmaine Reid of Fort Erie,
Ont., and Jody Patrick of Calgary, seeded second,
fell to Joanne Wright and Natalie Munt of England
in their semifinal. The English pair won the gold.
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MEN'S
EIGHT WINS GOLD AT ROWING WORLDS
SEVILLE,
Spain - The men's eight put a golden finish on the final
race of the day at the 2002 FISA World Rowing Championships
in Seville, Spain (Sept. 15 to 22).
The
Canadian eight - 10 years after an Olympic gold in Barcelona
in this event - dominated the race, and edged out Germany
and the U.S. for the coveted win.
"It's just wonderful. To see that we were in the
lead from early in the race was a nice surprise,"
said men's coach Mike Spracklen, who also coached the
1992 crew. "Then we got into our pace and I knew
we'd get there first, but I couldn't wait - I wanted
it to go faster."
Coxswain
Brian Price, who had missed a few crucial days of training
this week due to illness, was elated at his crew's performance.
"I didn't feel any pain once I got out there -
I was psyched," said Price. "We dropped the
field at around the 1000-metre mark and then just went
for it." The winning time was 5:26.92.
The
men's eight, pictured above after winning the Royal
Henley, also took the gold at the FISA World Rowing
Championships in Seville on the weekend.. |
Members
of the men's eight are Brian Price of Belleville,
Ont. (coxswain), Kevin Light of Sidney, B.C.,
Joe Stankevicius of Dundas, Ont., Andrew Hoskins
of Edmonton, Alta., Adam Kreek of London, Ont.,
Jeff Powell of Winnipeg, Man., Ben Rutledge of
Cranbrook, B.C., Kyle Hamilton of Richmond, B.C.
and Matt Swick of St. Catharines, Ont.
The
men have had a stellar season - winning at Britain's
Henley Royal, picking up a bronze at the World
Cup and now winning a World Championship gold
- a first for Canada.
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Stroke
of the eight, Jeff Powell, said the crew was in the
right frame of mind to take charge of the race. "We
just talked a lot about focus to prepare, and our goal
was to follow through. We executed our plan really well
today!"
The
gold was Canada's second medal of the day. The lightweight
four of Iain Brambell of Brentwood Bay, B.C., Jon Mandick
of Edmonton, Alta., Gavin Hassett of Victoria, B.C.,
and Doug Vandor of Dewittville, Que. got a bronze medal
in a time of 5:50.55 in a hard-fought race that saw
Denmark (5:47.21) and Italy (5:49.41) pick up gold and
silver.
On
Saturday, the heavyweight women's pairs and fours picked
up silver. Canada won a total of four medals at these
Worlds - compared with last year's single bronze.
BOSWELL
FOUND CONSISTENCY IN 2002 - WORLD CUP RECAP
MADRID,
Spain (Canadian Sport News) - Mark Boswell of Brampton,
Ont., capped a great season this weekend with a silver
medal in the men's high jump at the 9th IAAF World Cup
in athletics
He
equaled his Canadian record of 2.35 metres in a gold
medal performance at the Golden Gala Grand Prix in Rome.
He also earned victories in three other Grand Prix events
in addition to gold at the Commonwealth Games. The record
was initially set in a silver medal performance at the
1999 World Championships. Boswell said he tried everything
he could to break the mark this season.
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Mark
Boswell
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"I
was much more consistent this season and was on
the podium most of the time," he said. "I
learned something about the record and that is
to just let it come. I chased it all year because
I wanted it so bad and I didn't get it. I know
it will come, I just have to let it happen."
The
World Cup high jump event was delayed 35 minutes
due to high winds and driving rain. The deluge,
which lasted 15 minutes, sent thousands of fans
scrambling for cover at La Comunidad Stadium.
The jumpers had just completed their warm-ups
and been introduced when the skies opened.
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European
champion Yaroslav Rybakov of Russia, ranked third
in the world, jumped cleanly and won the gold
by clearing a season-best 2.31 metres.
Boswell,
ranked second internationally, started at 2.15
metres and also cleared 2.23, 2.26 and 2.29, which
is the height that earned him the silver. Ben
Challenger of Britain was a distant third at 2.20.
"The
turf was very slippery and made things scary at
times," said Boswell. "But I was very
pleased to be able to refocus after the rain.
I'm so happy I ended the season on such a high
note. It's a big motivation for next season."
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Jason
Tunks. |
Jason
Tunks of London Ont. posted the next best Canadian performance
placing fifth in the men's discus throw. The 6'6"
Tunks hurt his back twice this year including once at
the Commonwealth Games. A meet last week in London was
his first since the Games. He'll also visit a knee specialist
this fall and says he could undergo surgery.
"I
think I established a good solid base to work on for
the next couple of years," said Tunks, the Canadian
record holder at 67.88. "I threw nine times over
64 metres this season. I had a lot of changes in my
life, there was a lot of moving so next season should
be more stable at that end. Plus I'll be back with my
coach (John Allan) for the full year."
IN
THE NEWS.....
ALPINE
CANADA ALPIN HONOURS DISABLED SKI TEAM COACH
Forsyth, Roy win top athlete Awards of Excellence
Whistler
B.C. - Ozzie Sawicki, head coach of the Canadian
Disabled Alpine Ski Team has been named winner of Alpine
Canada Alpin's prestigious President's Award.
Sawicki,
whose racers won 33 World Cup and Paralympic medals
last season, was named for the honour by President Ken
Read at the Alpine Canada Alpin Awards of Excellence
dinner Saturday in Whistler.
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Ozzie
Sawicki was hounoured with the President's Award.
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"Ozzie
Sawicki leads one of the most successful athletic
programs in the nation and commits an unparalleled
amount of time and energy to advancing the profile
and performance of his sport in Canada,"
said Read.
"It
is his dedication and character that makes this
man a worthy recipient of the President's Award."
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The
national ski team also named Allison Forsyth and Jean-Philippe
Roy as its senior athletes of the year. Geneviève
Simard won as breakthrough athlete, and Kelly VanderBeek
was selected top junior.
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Led
by the double-gold and bronze medal performances
of Lauren Woolstencroft, the Canadian Disabled
Alpine Ski Team won 12 of Canada's 15 medals at
the Paralympics in Salt Lake City. Woolstencroft,
21 of Calgary, was also honoured as the disabled
team's athlete of the year.
Forsyth,
23 a native of Nanaimo, B.C., scored the Canadian
Alpine Ski Team's best result last season, finishing
second in Giant Slalom at Copper Mountain, Colo.
She also finished seventh at the Olympic Games
in giant slalom.
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Lauren
Woolstencroft |
"We
have a strong women's team and I'm very excited about
winning this award for the first time," Forsyth
said from training camp in Switzerland. "We're
back in the office training hard for next season and
things are looking great."
FULL
LIST OF THE 2002 ALPINE CANADA ALPIN AWARDS OF EXCELLENCE
President's Award: Ozzie Sawicki, Calgary, Head
Coach Canadian Disabled Alpine Ski Team
Canadian Alpine Ski Team Senior Male Athlete of the
Year: Jean-Philippe Roy, Ste-Flavie, Que.
Canadian Alpine Ski Team Senior Female Athlete of the
Year: Allison Forsyth, Nanaimo, BC
Canadian Disabled Alpine Ski Team Athlete of the Year:
Lauren Woolstencroft, Calgary
Andrezj Kozbial Coach of the Year: Mark Sharp, Banff,
Alta., Women's Technical Team
Most Valuable Coach: Jim Pollock, Whistler, B.C. Women's
Technical Team
Canadian Alpine Ski Team Junior Athlete of the Year:
Kelly VanderBeek, Kitchener, Ont.
Canadian Alpine Ski Team Breakthrough Athlete of the
Year: Geneviève Simard, Val Morin, Que.
Canadian Disabled Alpine Ski Team Breakthrough Athlete
of the Year: Scott Patterson, Vancouver
Ski Club of the Year: Mont Tremblant
Max Meier Province of the Year: Quebec
Steve Podborski Award for Outstanding Juvenile Racer:
Carmel McElroy, Calgary
Canadian Alpine Ski Team Alumni of the Year: Peter Webster,
Vancouver
Official of the Year: Glenn Grice, Calgary
Canadian Ski Coaches Federation Award: Hugues Ansermoz,
Women's Development Team
IN THE NEWS.....
KAREN
HUGHES NAMED WOMEN'S TEAM HEAD COACH FOR 2002-2003 SEASON
CALGARY
- Karen Hughes was named as Head Coach of Canada's National
Women's Team for the 2002-2003 season, CHA's Vice-President,
Hockey Johnny Misley announced on Monday.
Hughes
has been a member of Canada's women's coaching pool
and women's program since 1996. Last season, Hughes
was Head Coach for Canada's National Under-22 team,
as well as an assistant coach with Canada's Women's
Olympic team, which captured the Olympic gold medal
in women's hockey. Hughes also won two IIHF World Championship
gold medals as an assistant coach with Canada's National
Women's in both 1999 and 2000.
Karen
Hughes, new head coach of the Women's National Hockey
Team. |
This
announcement marks the first time that Hughes
has been named as Head Coach of Canada's National
Women's team.
Hughes,
a NCCP Advanced II (Level 4) certified coach,
began the 2002-2003 season as Head Coach of Canada's
Under 22 team, leading Canada to a 2-0-1 series
win over the USA National Under 22 Team in Lake
Placid, NY in August 2002.
The
2002-2003 Head Coaching position for Canada's
National Women's team will be a part-time position,
therefore, Hughes, of Agincourt, ON will continue
her duties as Head Coach with the University of
Toronto Varsity Blues' women's team.
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Hughes,
entering her 10th season with the U of T., led the Blues
to a CIAU National Championship in the 2000-2001season.
Misley
also announced that Hughes will be joined behind the
National Women's Team bench by associate coach Mike
Pelino and assistant coach Ken Dufton for the 2002-2003
season.
IN
THE NEWS.....
LOUIS
BARBEAU NAMED CANADA'S CHEF DE MISSION FOR 2004 PARALYMPIC
GAMES
OTTAWA
(CP) - Louis Barbeau of Repentigny, Que., has been named
the chef de mission for Canada's team at the 2004 Paralympic
Games in Athens, the Canadian Paralympic Committee announced
Tuesday.
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Barbeau,
who was the assistant chef de mission in Sydney
in 2000, is the road and track cycling technical
director for the Quebec cycling federation - a
position he has held for 15 years.
"I
am honoured to be chosen as chef de mission for
the Paralympic Games in Athens and be the leader
for an exceptional group of athletes and coaches,"
Barbeau said in a statement. "There's a lot
of enthusiasm about Paralympic sport right now
in Canada and I'm delighted to contribute to that
excitement."
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Louis
Barbeau named as Chef de Mission for the 2004 Paralympic
Games. |
Barbeau
is also vice-president, high performance on the Canadian
Paralympic Committee's board of directors. In addition,
he is involved as a volunteer on the International Paralympic
Committee's executive committee for cycling and recently
joined the International Blind Sports Association cycling
committee.
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