Well we're only day's away from the tournament's start in Tampere, in Finland so we thought via our friends at Ringette Canada that it's about time we gave you the low-down on the team and introduced you to the team, as they go in quest for glory.
Ringette is a Canadian invention that has become one of the fastest team sports on ice. Sam Jacks, a recreation director and sports enthusiast from North Bay, Ontario, invented the sport in 1963 when he saw the need for a winter team sport for girls.
Internationally, ringette is played in a number of countries around the world, including Finland, Sweden, the United States, France, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic. Since 1990, a world ringette championship has been held on a regular basis, with Canada and Finland being the predominant challengers. Canadian ringette athletes have continuously served as ambassadors of the sport, introducing ringette in countries as far away as Japan, Australia, Germany and New Zealand.
Anyway the 22 girl's in the Canada squad for the Championships which starts in a few days time, is as follows. The announcement was made in May and followed a tough training camp which saw the best girls selected.
Team Canada 2010 Roster:
00 – Vanessa Cowlen – Defence – Cambridge, Ontario
1 – Keely Brown – Goalkeeper – Edmonton, Alberta (Assistant Captain)
3 – Dallas Robbins – Defence – Calgary, Alberta
4 – Jenn Wakefield – Centre – Langley, British Columbia
6 – Kailee Dundas – Forward – Hussar, Alberta
7 – Lindsay Burns – Defence – Starbuck, Manitoba
8 – Abbey Hoes – Defence – Calgary, Alberta
12 – Victoria Russell – Centre – Calgary, Alberta
14 – Andrea Ferguson – Forward – Winnipeg, Manitoba
16 – Katie Lugg – Defence – Ottawa, Ontario
17 – Jennifer Hartley – Centre – Balzac, Alberta
18 – Jacqueline Gaudet – Forward – Cambridge, Ontario (Captain)
19 – Colleen Hagan – Defence – Manotick, Ontario
21 – Barb Bautista – Forward – Edmonton, Alberta (Assistant Captain)
24 – Jenna McBride – Defence – Ottawa, Ontario
30 – Bobbi Mattson – Goalkeeper – Calgary, Alberta
31 – Meghan Pittaway – Goalkeeper – Cambridge, Ontario
64 – Beth Hurren – Defence – Bowmanville, Ontario
66 – Stéphanie Séguin – Forward – Saint-Laurent, Quebec
81 – Erin Cumpstone – Centre – Saskatoon, Saskatchevan
87 – Ashley Peters – Forward – Cardiff Echoes, Alberta
99 - Julie Blanchette – Forward – Montréal, Quebec
So now that you know the girls, here's a good video of them introducing themselves shortly after they were announced in the World Championship Roster.
We thought we'd focus a tad more on the captain, Jacqueline Gaudet, from her profile alone her experience and know-how for Team Canada will be vital. After all every good team needs a good captain.
Gaudet's Stats:
Position: Forward and Team Captain
Height: 5'9''
DOB: 29/5/1982
Hometown: Cambridge, Ontario
Birthplace: Edmonton, Alberta
Date of Birth: 5/29/1982
Gaudet started playing ringette at the age of five, following in the footsteps of her older sister Jenn. She credits making her debut on Team Canada in 2000 as her greatest ringette accomplishment. When asked the best piece of advice she has ever received Gaudet responds, “To believe in myself, have confidence in my abilities and to never give up. If you always give 110 percent, only good things can happen.”
Anyway the opening games of the Championships start on Monday. With all games taking place at the Hakametsa Ice Hall in Tampere, the venue is set for a fascinating week of action. Canada have won the championship on four occasions and will be going for their fifth title this week.
Here's some action of the girls being put through some last bits of practice over the last couple of days out in Finland. As you can see it may look easy at first, as you have to be super fit to play the game and the pressure is always on.
If the girls are to do so, it would be a magnificient achievement for their coach Lyndsay Wheelans that would be a fantastic achievement. She was an athlete on the only team to ever win two consecutive World Ringette Championships in 1990 and 1992. She was the head coach for Team Canada’s gold medal win in 1996, silver medal win in 2007 and assistant coach when Team Canada won silver in both 2000 and 2004. Wheelans is no stranger to Finnish Ringette either, as she has had a spell coaching the Finns as well.
When asked what it means to be part of Team Canada, Wheelans explained “Words can’t really describe what it is like to stand behind a team of athletes this committed, this fit and this good who are wearing these beautiful jerseys with the red maple leaf on their chest.”
In European football of course if you win the Champions League 5 times you get to keep the trophy, I wonder if Ringette's World Organisers would be willing to do this? It's just an idea of course.
If the girls are going to do it though, it's not going to be handed to them on a plate as Sweden, USA and the hosts Finland are top notch teams. If Team Canada are going to win the gold they will need to first finish in the top 2 in the group stages once every team has played each other. Then they will have to win the 3 game series between the first or second team in the group to claim the gold.
It's a tough challenge but one that the Girls should be able to do, providing they start well of course and that Wheelans and the rest of the coaching team make the right calls at the right time. Everyone at SportTrades wishes them the best of luck.
Here's the Schedule for the week ahead:
Saturday, October 30
Exhibition Game - Canada vs Finland - Isku Areena (Lahti, Finland)
Sunday, October 31
Practice – Canada - Hakametsa Ice Hall (Tampere, Finland)
Monday, November 1
Opening Ceremonies
Game - Finland vs USA - Hakametsa Ice Hall (Tampere, Finland)
Game - Canada vs Sweden - Hakametsa Ice Hall (Tampere, Finland)
Tuesday, November 2
Game – USA vs Sweden - Hakametsa Ice Hall (Tampere, Finland)
Game - Canada vs Finland - Hakametsa Ice Hall (Tampere, Finland)
Wednesday, November 3
Game – Canada vs USA - Hakametsa Ice Hall (Tampere, Finland)
Game – Finland vs Sweden - Hakametsa Ice Hall (Tampere, Finland)
Thursday, November 4
Game #1 – Bronze Series - Hakametsa Ice Hall (Tampere, Finland)
Game #1 – Gold Series - Hakametsa Ice Hall (Tampere, Finland)
Friday, November 5
Game #2 – Bronze Series - Hakametsa Ice Hall (Tampere, Finland)
Game #2 – Gold Series - Hakametsa Ice Hall (Tampere, Finland)
Saturday, November 6
Game #3 – Bronze Series - Hakametsa Ice Hall (Tampere, Finland)
Game #3 – Gold Series - Hakametsa Ice Hall (Tampere, Finland)
13:00 – Closing Ceremonies and Awards Banquet
For all the latest news on the sport, head over to Ringette Canada's official twitter account @ringettecanada where you're learn more about the sport. Also head over to Ringette Canada's official website, which offers more information and latest news on the sport http://www.ringette.ca
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