Three Remarkable Canadian Athletes

Posted by admin on Feb 1, 2010 in Sports | 0 comments

Patrick Chan
Chan, who was born in Ottawa, Ontario, is a figure skater participating in his first Winter Olympics. The 20-year-old, who is currently ranked 6th in the world, is coming into Vancouver with a strong chance to win a medal, even gold. Chan is coming off an impressive year is figure skating, winning the 2009 Four Continents Championship and taking home the silver in the 2009 World Championship. On top of this, Chan has won the Canadian Championship since 2008. One interesting note that should be cause for concern is Chan just recently fired his skating coach, just weeks before the Olympics, hiring Lori Nichol and Christy Krall for his quest in Vancouver.

Cheryl Benard
Benard, a Canadian curler, born in Grande Prairie, Alberta, took gold in the 2009 Women’s Canadian Curling Trials, a must win to be the Canadian representative in the Olympic Games. Although many of us would likely be more comfortable with Jennifer Jones, Benard has an impressive resume herself. Benard has won 4 provincial championships, representing Alberta in the Scotties Tournament of Hearts. She is also ranked the 4th best women’s curler in Canada and during the trials, Benard’s team went 6-1, defeating Shannon Kleibrink, making them Canada’s representative for the Olympics. Her team, made up of Cori Bartel (lead), Carolyn Darbyshire (second), Susan O’Connor (third), will help Benard (skip) through the journey, but all eyes will be focused on Benard to win the gold.

Ashleigh McIvor
McIvor, born in Whistler BC, is a 27-year-old freestyle skier going into this event as an underdog, but is on a hot streak. McIvor, in her last 8 races in the World Cup circuit, has had seven top 10 finishes and is peaking at just the right time. Affected by shoulder injuries, mainly from a dislocated shoulder, McIvor’s records before the 2009 season are flawed due to the fact she raced through the injury, starting at the gate with only one shoulder, affecting her starts and thus her stats. Look for McIvor to surprise many people at the Olympics, and maybe even a medal.