Sport Shorts: One Month Left Until 2015 Pan Am Vote
One Month Left for Toronto 2015: One month from now, the Pan American Sports Organization (PASO) holds its General Assembly in Guadalajara, Mexico. From Nov. 4 to 6 its members will vote on whether Toronto, Lima or Bogota will host the 2015 Pan American Games. Toronto’s bid incorporates a host of cities in the Greater Golden Horseshoe Area, with a mix of existing and proposed world-class sport facilities. By then, the last city in either Canada or the United States to host the Games was Winnipeg in 1999.
Men’s Eight Stamina Put to Test: The Canadian rowing men’s eight – World Championship silver medallist in August – faced a gruelling race Sunday in Rendsburg, Germany. The Hanse Cup is billed as the world’s toughest rowing race. It’s easy to see why – it is 12.7 km long compared to the Olympic distance of 2 km. In the demanding race along the Kiel Canal, Canada finished second behind Germany.
USA-Canada Head to Head Again: Today the Canadian women’s hockey team battles its fiercest rival, the United States, in an exhibition game in Victoria. It is the first of six games in the lead-up to the 2010 Olympic Winter Games. Today’s game is a fundraiser for Hockey Canada and Community Living Victoria, which supports those with developmental disabilities. These games represent the two gold medal game favourites for next February. The exhibition series continues in Spokane, Wash. (Oct. 16) Denver (Dec. 12), Calgary (Dec. 15), St. Paul, Minn. (Dec. 30) and Ottawa on New Year’s Day.
Training Time: October spells training for a slew of Canada’s best winter sport athletes. On Saturday, speed skaters wrapped up an extended camp in Calgary. A ski jumping training camp starts today in Calgary. A snowboard training camp runs Tuesday to Thursday this week in Landgraaf, Netherlands. A three-week cross-country camp is underway in Mammoth Lakes, Calif. Freestyle moguls skiers are starting one now in Zermatt, Switz. No matter what the sport, Canadian athletes are busy preparing for a memorable next five months.
Remembering Gabriel Beaudry: A lifelong athlete, Gabriel Beaudry was a 1948 Canadian Olympian in the sport of rowing. He competed in London that summer in the men’s double sculls. Over the years he turned into an alpine ski expert and at one point was a nationally-ranked three-way skier in cross-country, alpine and ski jumping. He went on to become president of Ski Quebec and vice-president of the Canadian Ski Association. Beaudry, 83, passed away in Vernon, B.C. on Sept. 19. The Canadian Olympic Team extends its condolences to his family and friends.
