Sport Shorts: Reflections on Figure Skating
Buntin Retires: Three-time national champion and 2006 Olympian Craig Buntin announced he is retiring from competitive figure skating. The native of Kelowna, B.C. was Canadian pairs champion three times with Valérie Marcoux, and competed at the 2006 Olympic Winter Games. With his most recent partner, Meagan Duhamel, Buntin finished sixth at the 2008 World Championships. While planning to stay active in figure skating, Buntin will enter the MBA program at Montreal’s McGill University.
Buntin’s long-time coach Richard Gauthier said: “As his coach I worked with an athlete who was dedicated to his career. We worked as a team and during all those years, I discovered that he had a lot of heart and a very positive attitude in life. Not only that, he is also a person whose dedication inspired all other athletes around him.”
Griner Makes Figure Skating Hall of Fame: Among this year’s inductees into Canada’s Figure Skating Hall of Fame is athlete Wendy Griner. Now 66, the Toronto native was a figure skating star in the early ’60s. Griner was Canadian champion from 1960 to 1963, world silver medallist in 1962, and two-time Olympian in 1960 and 1964.
Open Water Action in Roberval: For the first time, the FINA World Open Water Swimming Championships are coming to Canada. This big-time event will run July 15-23 in Roberval, Quebec. Swimmers will compete in gruelling distances of 5, 10 and 25 km, including athletes from 30 countries. For more information, visit www.roberval2010.com.
Mountain Bikers Blaze Through Canmore: This weekend, the Canadian Mountain Bike Championships run in Canmore, Alta. Nearly 400 riders will compete in the 7 km course loop that has hosted two World Cups in the past. Athletes include 2004 Olympic silver medallist Marie-Hélène Prémont (Chateau Richer, Que.) and two-time Olympian Geoff Kabush (Courtenay, B.C.).
