Tourism, Parks, Recreation and Culture

FINAL TEAM ALBERTA MEDAL COUNT

FINAL WORD FROM THE 2007 CANADA WINTER GAMES!

Alberta's next generation of elite international high-performance athletes joined forces to accomplish their goal of finishing third in the overall medal count at the 2007 Canada Winter Games in Whitehorse, Yukon.

Nearly 260 athletes, which represent one of the largest teams Alberta has sent to a Canada Games, teamed up to win 79 medals including 24 gold, 29 silver and 26 bronze. Alberta had athletes compete in each of the 21 sport disciplines.

"We came here with very high expectations for our athletes and support staff and we delivered on all counts," said Cam Berwald, chef de mission, Team Alberta. "Our young athletes have represented Alberta both on and off the playing field with class, and are true role models for their communities. We applaud them for their commitment to excellence, and congratulate each athlete who put on the Alberta uniform with great pride."

Alberta has finished third in the standings four times throughout the history of the Canada Winter Games, the most recent in 2003 when the two-week event was staged at Bathurst-Campbellton, N.B.

One of the many bright spots to emerge from the Canada Winter Games was the performance of cross-country skier Marcia Birkigt, who was selected to carry Alberta's flag into the closing ceremonies at ATCO Place stadium on Saturday afternoon.

Birkigt, of Athabasca, made two trips to the top step of the podium during week two of the Canada Winter Games in Whitehorse. A model student attending her fourth year of university at Augustana University in Camrose, Birkigt won the women's 7.5 kilometre classic ski race, and led Alberta to gold in the women's 4x3.75 kilometre relay event.

Walking in behind Birkigt will be four banner carriers that were also nominated by their coaches and team leaders. Banner carriers include: Edmonton's Andrew Graham, who won silver in boxing; Calgary's Anthony Prymack, who won double gold in fencing; David Letourneau, of Calgary, who won silver in squash; and Joel Peterman, of Red Deer, who skipped the Alberta rink to the province's final gold medal of the Games Friday evening.

Team Quebec finished on top of the standings with 121 medals, while Ontario was second with 111. British Columbia was on Alberta's heels in fourth with 77 medals.

TOP STORIES FOR MARCH 9, 2007

The wheelchair basketball team celebrated one of the most thrilling victories of the Canada Games after hitting a shot at the buzzer to knock off Manitoba 62-61 in the opening game of the relegation round in Whitehorse. Manitoba had a 61-60 lead with seven seconds remaining. However, Alberta turned the ball over and rushed up the court to release the winning shot at the top of the key as the buzzer sounded for a one-point victory.

Jakub Maslowski, of Edmonton, and Chad Jassman, of Calgary, led Team Alberta with 18 points each.

Alberta's table tennis squad won a hard-fought match over Ontario late Wednesday night to win the bronze medal in the team event. Forced into a tie breaker, Edmonton's Anthony Chan, and Calgary's Hannah Li joined forces to solidify the 7-6 victory.

The individual matches begin Thursday and will wrap up on Friday.

Jackson Payne, of Edmonton, and John Hall, of Calgary, added to more medals to Alberta's Thursday total late evening the evening after finishing first and third respectively in the men's all around gymnastics competition.

The 15-year-old Payne won the competition after posting a total score of 76.650 from each of the six events including floor; pommel horse; rings; vault; parallel bars; and horizontal bars.

"I wanted to come here and win gold and I'm so happy I did," said an elated Payne. "I got off to a slow start, but things came together. It is really nice to win and have my result count for the medals under Alberta's flag."

Payne's teammate, John Hall, also had a stellar day. Hall finished third with a score of 74.250. Jayd Lukenchuk, of Saskatchewan, was sandwiched between the two Albertans on the podium after claiming the silver medal at 75.400.

TOP STORIES FOR MARCH 8, 2007

SUMMER GLACIER TRAINING FACILITY PROPELS ALPINE SKIER TO CANADA GAMES PODIUM
While most Canadians were taking summer vacation in July, Alberta's Andrea Bliss, along with her provincial and national alpine teammates headed to CODA's Camp Green on Farnham Glacier, an on-snow summer high-altitude training facility in southeastern British Columbia. The goal is to increase development, and ultimately, put more athletes on the podium at the national and international levels.

For Edmonton's Andrea Bliss – it has already resulted in two medals at the Canada Winter Games.

Bliss, who is a National Sport School student-athlete, finished second with a two-run time of two minutes 07.40 seconds for her second medal of the week. The 17-year-old won gold yesterday in the Super G event.

Alberta's Cam Brewington matched teammate, Andrea Bliss', performance again on Wednesday. After taking gold yesterday in the men's Super G, Brewington jumped to the silver-medal spot today after posting a two-run time of 2:02.65.
 

Alberta racked up four medals in fencing on Wednesday at the 2007 Canada Winter Games. Alberta won gold in the women's epee division and men's foil.

In addition to the two gold medals added to Alberta's total, the women's sabre team also won a silver medal, while the men's sabre team took home the bronze.

ALBERTA'S YOUNGEST & OLDEST ATHLETES SHINE ON THE PODIUM
Edmonton's Rodney Dalessio, who is the oldest athlete on the Alberta team at 41, captured the hearts of the province winning a bronze medal in the men's division of the Special Olympics figure skating division. The Whitehorse Games is Dalessio's second trip to the Canada Winter Games.

Edmonton's Stuart Ure may be one of the youngest members of Team Alberta, but that didn't prevent the 13 year old from adding to the province's overall medal count. Ure jumped three spots in his final skate on Wednesday to capture a silver medal in the men's pre-novice singles division after posting a score of 78.34.
 

TOP STORIES FOR MARCH 7, 2007

Alberta captured double gold thanks to Andrea Bliss and Cam Brewington in men's and women's Super G on Tuesday at Mt. Sima.  Taking advantage of a strong course radio report prior to jumping into the start gate, Edmonton's Andrea Bliss made the first trip to the golden spot on the podium for Alberta after crossing the finish line at 51:42 seconds.

Meanwhile, it was an emotional end to the men's race as two Albertans, who are best friends and former roommates, finished first and second. Cam Brewington of Calgary claimed the golden prize with a time of 49.70 seconds and Chris Scheele of Edmonton was second at 49.89.

Alberta's women's cross-country skiers proved they are the most powerful sprint racers in the country after sweeping the podium Tuesday afternoon in Whitehorse.

Cathy Jaques of Canmore led the way for the Alberta speedsters in the skate sprint, blazing her way around the Mt. McIntyre trails to take home the gold medal.

Heidi Widmer of Banff whose brother – Phil- skis on the national team, skied to the silver medal, while 16-year-old Marlis Kromm of Calgary completed the Alberta sweep in third.

TOP STORIES FOR MARCH 6, 2007

Mother Nature delayed the arrival of athletes to Whitehorse for week two competition at the Canada Winter Games. It was the same story for the first cross-country ski race, but that didn't put a damper on the next generation of elite cross-country skier's quest for the podium on Monday in the Yukon, and Alberta athletes took advantage of the opportunity to race claiming three of the six medals in the men's and women's classic races.

Marcia Birkigt, of Athabasca, put the Alberta flag on top of the women's podium after winning the 7.5 kilometre jaunt with a time of 22 minutes 59.40 seconds.

"I was hoping for this result, but you can never expect it," said the 22-year-old Birkigt, who found it difficult to race so late in the day due to the cold weather delay which pushed the start back to 4 p.m. "It's exciting to win the gold here, and I'm really happy I was able to deal with the weather and challenges."

Two Alberta athletes also shocked the nation in the men's 10-kilometre classic race. Edmonton's Curtis Merry claimed the silver after posting a time of 27:54.30, while Graeme Killick, of Banff, was third at 27:54.40.

"I had no expectations of getting onto the podium so this is a big surprise for me," said Merry. "It was pretty cold out there, but I just remained focused and battled my way through it. I'm really happy to start the week off like this."

TOP STORIES FOR MARCH 5, 2007

Team Alberta  claims 38 Medals in Week I of the Games

"We headed into these games targeting a top-three finish in the standings, and our first group of athletes has positioned us to achieve that collective goal," said Cam Berwald, chef de mission, Team Alberta.

"The organizers, volunteers and people of Whitehorse have done a fabulous job in staging the Canada Games and making sure everything has gone smoothly. We look forward to building on this successful first half of the Games as we welcome our next group of athletes to Whitehorse for another week of great competition."

Team Alberta will have 185 participants, competing in 11 sports, for week two of the Games, which wrap up on March 10, 2007.
 

Erika Dort, Jaime Laird, Jackie Moss and Kelsey Tole at practice 

TOP STORIES FOR WEEK 1!

Calgary's Mike Henitiuk captured Alberta's first gold medal of Day 6 at the 2007 Canada Winter Games in Whitehorse. The 16-year-old freestyle skier ripped up the Mt. Sima run to win the men's dual moguls competition in thrilling fashion.

"This is awesome as I really didn't expect a podium at this competition so I'm very excited," said the Canada Games rookie. "I had my run pretty much dialed in, and kept improving it through each round. Everything went perfect."

Coached by Olympian Murray Cluff, Henitiuk cruised his way through the head-to-head mogul brackets, which culminated with him knocking off Quebec's Marc-Antoine Gagnon in the final.

Joining Henitiuk and Gagnon on the podium was Quebec's Cedric Rochon who won the dash for bronze.

Henitiuk will have one more chance for a medal in Whitehorse when the battle for freestyle supremacy continues in the half-pipe on Friday.

Alberta's men's and women's archery teams both won gold on Thursday in the team recurve events.

There was no battle of Alberta on the women's side of the draw. Edmonton's Kelsey Davidson and Calgary's Lindsay Struthers united to win their first Canada Winter Games gold medal in the women's team competition.

Davidson, 19, and Struthers, 21, who were both making their second trip to the Canada Games, were poised not to miss the target on another opportunity for a medal.

"This is amazing. This has been four years in the making and this was our time to shine," said Davidson. "We just clicked out there today, and benefited from our experience as a team."

Watching the Alberta women hit their target on top of the podium, the men's team of Michael Wong and Lael Barlow took aim of their own in their gold-medal match over Ontario. The two Edmonton teens won a pressure-filled match to secure the double gold for Alberta in front of a packed stage of boisterous fans.

"We are thrilled with this because I had no idea we'd be able to beat Ontario," said the 17-year-old Barlow, who added it was his first major national competition. "It was pretty intense, and there was so much pressure in the final when you are at that line by yourself, and everyone is watching you with every shot counting."

The Cinderella run for Alberta's ringette squad came to a disappointing end in the gold-medal game on Thursday afternoon.

Cheered on by friends, family and teammates who packed the house, including the men's hockey team, Alberta suffered a difficult 9-2 loss to a bigger and more-skilled Ontario team in the final.

Led by Alberta's flag bearer at the opening ceremonies, Jennifer Hartley, of Balzac, Alberta went unbeaten in round robin play, and knocked off Quebec in Wednesday's semi finals to advance to today's big east-west showdown.

After dealing with a tough 5-1 drubbing from Team Manitoba on Wednesday night, Alberta's men's hockey team was back on the ice Thursday afternoon for a final practice before their bronze-medal game against British Columbia.

The men's hockey team will face off at Takhini Arena Friday afternoon.

Calgary teenagers, Emily Brooks and Claire Friesen, joined forces in the pool to win a bronze medal in the synchronized swimming duet competition. The two members of the Calgary Aquabelles solidified the final spot on the podium after racking up a total of 75.127 points.

Emily & Claire take a moment to pose for the camera before their podium performance.

TOP STORIES FOR MARCH 1, 2007

Away from his family and friends, Peter White woke up on his 17th birthday in Whitehorse on Wednesday to very few birthday greetings. But the Canmore, Alta., resident was okay with delaying his birthday celebrations – at least for a few hours – as he headed to Mt. Sima to compete in the biggest event of the season at the Canada Winter Games.

White now has more than a birthday to celebrate. The Canada Winter Games rookie flew his way into the half-pipe final while pulling off a series of huge tricks to claim the gold medal after scoring 35.70 points.

"This is an awesome birthday present and I couldn't be happier right now," said White. "I tried to pull off a bunch of good tricks and I'm so excited that I won today. It has been an incredible experience for me this week."
 

White's Alberta teammate, Matt Wallace, of Calgary, landed beside him on the podium. Wallace solidified the silver medal with 32.90 points. Chris Astofooroff, of British Columbia, finished third at 31.40.

Meanwhile, Calgary's Breanna Stangeland won the third medal of the day for the snowboard team. The 18-year-old won a silver medal after scoring a total of 31.50 points in her final run.

"I'm just really happy to have the opportunity to compete here and that I was able to get on the podium," said Stangeland. "It was really cold out there today, but winning a medal definitely makes it worthwhile."

Alberta speed skaters won silver medals in the men's and women's 100 metre races, and the men's team pursuit on an extremely cold, yet sunny afternoon, at the outdoor oval in Whitehorse.

Lucas Duffield and Alanna Komisar, both of Calgary, finished second in the 100-metre races. Duffield then joined teammates, Keith Sulzer, of Calgary, Jackson Hill, of Sherwood Park, and Kevin Plante, of Edmonton, to win another silver in the team pursuit.

"It was a great week for the team and myself," said Keith Sulzer, who takes home three silver and one gold medal this week. "I came here to win four medals and I did what I expected of myself so I'm very happy."

Two archery athletes had a line on the podium in men's and women's competition on Wednesday. Edmonton's Tristan Lebel won a gold medal in men's compound individual archery, while Ashley Wallace, of Redcliff, won a bronze medal in the women's compound event.

The 17-year-old Lebel qualified for the head-to-head matches in 10th spot and continued shooting his way through the brackets until the gold-medal final. The Canada Games rookie fought off increasing pressure throughout the day to chalk up another gold medal for Alberta after beating Manitoba's Adam Berry in the final by one point.

"I got through qualifying and just wanted to keep on winning and I did," said Lebel. "This is so awesome to win a gold medal. The whole experience this week has been incredible. We have the team event tomorrow and I'm excited to compete for another medal."
 

TOP STORIES FOR FEBRUARY 28, 2007

Tyson Smith and Rosanna Crawford both claimed their second consecutive gold medals in biathlon at the Canada Winter Games. Smith and Crawford, both of Canmore, won the modified individual 10 and 12.5-kilometre races respectively under extremely cold and windy weather conditions.

"I was hoping for a good result, but never did I think I would win two gold medals," said Smith, who added it was a challenging day as athletes had to wait around for the weather to warm up before starting. "It was really cold, but I just told myself to suck it up and get out there and get the job done. This was a huge race for me."

Every king needs a queen, and Rosanna Crawford wasted little time joining Smith on top of the biathlon podium.

"I knew I had to make up some time so I just skied like a mad woman to try and finish on top," said Crawford. "This means so much to me. Being injured this year and missing out on world championships, this just gives me extra confidence that I know I can do it."

Edmonton's Yannick Letailleur completed the medal hat trick for Alberta at the biathlon venue on Tuesday. Letailleur, who also won a silver medal in yesterday's sprint, finished third in the men's event with a time of 50:59.40.

Edmonton's Keltie Hansen came to Whitehorse as a Canada Winter Games rookie, but will now leave as the new queen of women's freestyle aerials skiing. The 14-year-old Hansen dominated the women's aerials event after putting together a golden jump that included a daffy and spread eagle. Hansen racked up a total of 58.67 points to land on the top step of the podium.

"I thought I could win here, but being so young I didn't know what to expect so wasn't sure how I'd finish," said Hansen. "It is pretty cool to be one of the youngest and win the gold medal. This gives me lots of confidence and is pretty awesome."

Alberta's snowboard athletes headed to Whitehorse hoping to put on a good show to prove they belonged on the sport line-up for the Canada Winter Games. Invited as a demonstration sport, the nation's top young snowboard athletes competed in the parallel giant slalom event on Mt. Sima, and two Alberta athletes went head-to-head for the gold medal in a Calgary-Edmonton rivalry.

Calgary's Daniel Haines won the battle of Alberta over teammate, Curt Rohm, of Edmonton in a thrilling battle in the final heat.

"I'm really happy to come out on top, and to be in the final with Curt couldn't be better," said Haines. "It was pretty cold out there today, but we battled through it and it was a lot of fun. It is pretty special to win gold."

Anxious to get onto the mat and compete after spending the first three days waiting for their event to begin in Whitehorse, Alberta's judo athletes pinned four more bronze medals to the overall standings for the province.

The following Alberta athletes finished third:

TOP STORIES FOR FEBRUARY 27, 2007

Biathletes from across the province of Alberta teamed up to win three medals, including two golds, in the men's and women's sprint events at the Mt. Grey Biathlon Centre in Whitehorse, Yukon on Monday.   Tyson Smith and Rosanna Crawford, both of Canmore, won the 7.5- and 10-kilometre sprint events respectively.

The 19-year-old Smith battled very cold, northerly winds which ripped through Whitehorse making shooting on the range extremely difficult, to post a time of 32 minutes 45.50 seconds in the opening biathlon event of the 2007 Canada Winter Games. 

Edmonton's Yannick Letailleur, who shot clean in the prone position during his first trip to the range but missed two shots standing, grabbed the silver medal after skiing his way to a time of 33:20.70.

"This was a big race for me so it feels really good to get the gold medal," said Smith. "I knew my skis were really fast, but I figured I just had to switch my brain off in the range so I didn't over think things too much and it seemed to work. It was so cold out there. I just kept telling myself to stay positive and tried to keep warm."

Meanwhile, Rosanna Crawford, who is the younger sister of Olympic gold medallist in cross-country skiing, Chandra Crawford, won her first Canada Winter Games gold medal in the women's 7.5-kilometre sprint race. The 18-year-old Crawford fired her way to the top step of the podium after posting a time of 24:28.50, despite two misses on the range.

"Today I just pushed as hard as I could even though my chest was burning and I guess it paid off. The good thing about the pain was it kept me warm."

TOP STORIES FOR FEBRUARY 26, 2007

Calgary's Steve Buzinski won a bronze medal in the men's 1,500-metre short track speed skating event on day 2 of the 2007 Canada Winter Games in Whitehorse, Yukon.  However, the road to the podium in the final heat was anything but perfect for Buzinski, who is a Grade 12 student-athlete at CODA's National Sport School in Calgary.

The 17-year-old, who was up against four Quebec athletes and one skater from Ontario, grabbed the front of the pack for the majority

of the race in the men's final, following a crash by one of the Quebecers in the second lap.

Running out of gas, Buzinski fell back of the pack for the remaining two laps, and crossed the finish line in fourth spot with a time of 2 minutes 24.501 seconds. However, a ruling which disqualified another Quebec athlete, who finished ahead of Buzinski, moved the Albertan onto the final spot on the podium.

"I'm absolutely ecstatic right now and I couldn't have asked for anything more," said Buzinski. "I've been in this sport long enough to know that anything can happen, and you never count yourself out until the final results are posted. I'm thrilled it worked out for me, and I hope this is the first of a number of medals this week."

TOP STORIES FOR FEBRUARY 25, 2007

Calgary's Anastasia Bucsis may be used to training and competing in the cozy confines of the Olympic Oval back home, but on Saturday, the 17-year-old headed outdoors in Whitehorse to not only take on the nation, but also Mother Nature.

Bucsis overcame -30 degree temperatures to win Alberta's first medal of the 2007 Canada Winter Games when she finished second in the women's 500-metre speedskating event.

"I am so happy right now. I feel like my feet haven't come down from being two feet above the ground since the end of the race," said Bucsis. "I knew I could do this, but it is nice to finally get it done and get a medal for the province. I hope this is the first medal of many that we'll win over the next two weeks."

TOP STORIES FOR FEBRUARY 23, 2007

Alberta's next generation of Olympic athletes will not let the cold, arctic air get in their way of marching into ATCO Place stadium on Friday afternoon for the opening ceremonies, and ultimately, towards the podium at the Canada Winter Games in Whitehorse, Yukon, February 23 – March 10, 2007.

Led by 18-year-old Jennifer Hartley, of Balzac, an accomplished ringette player who will carry the team's flag, nearly 260 athletes will endeavour to position Alberta near the top of the Games' medal count in what promises to be two weeks of spectacular competition.

"This is a unique group of athletes which combines veteran leadership with youthful energy and drive," said Cam Berwald, Chef de Mission, Team Alberta, who added Alberta will have athletes competing in each of the 21 sports. "These athletes have achieved an unprecedented amount of success provincially and nationally. For many, this is the next major step on a journey towards achieving their Olympic dream. The first half of our team has arrived for the opening week of competition, and we are committed to working together to get off to a quick start and position Alberta in the top three in the point standings."

Alberta has finished third in the point standings four times throughout the history of the Canada Winter Games, the most recent in 2003 when the two-week event was staged at Bathurst-Campbellton, N.B.

The 2007 Canada Winter Games will mark the first time the event is staged north of the 60th parallel, and the 40th anniversary of the national spectacle. During that proud history the Games have acted as a stepping stone for many of Canada's most celebrated national, international and Olympic athletes including: Catriona Le May Doan; Steve Nash; Sydney Crosby; Marc Gagnon; and Adam Van Koeverden.

For more information, results and updates on how Team Alberta is doing at the 2007 Canada Winter Games, please visit us at www.teamalberta.org, or the host society website at www.2007canadagames.ca on the Internet.