February 8th 2010- Short Track Speed Skating News

February 8, 2010

Happy Monday!

I wish I could have updated SSW during the weekend.

I was at a short track speed skating competition in Milton all day on Saturday. Then on Saturday evening, I ate some bad barley and became quite ill. I spent most of Sunday in bed with a garbage pail by my side.

I’m still quite sick right now, but I’m well enough to update SSW with the most recent short track speed skating news that I could find;

RICHMOND, B.C. – Canada’s short-track speedskating team might be favoured to claim a handful of medals at the Vancouver Olympics but it’s leaving nothing to chance.

On Sunday, members of the squad, including medal favourites Charles Hamelin and Kalyna Roberge, marched outside the Speed Skating Canada House in Richmond, B.C., and entrusted their Olympic dreams to a towering Inukshuk planted nearby.

By SSW | Posted in Article, Blog, Facilities, Injury, International, National Selection, Olympics, Photos, RIP, Results, Short Track, Skaters, Television, Training, Upcoming, Video | Comments (0)

February 4th 2010- Tons Of Long Track Speed Skating News, Videos, Articles, & More

February 4, 2010

With the 2010 Winter Olympics fast-approaching, I’ll do my best to keep SSW updated with fresh speed skating news.

On that note, please understand that I’m balancing training and work with maintaining SSW.

If you need a short cut to the juice stuff, here are ‘Peter’s Picks’:

With that being said, let’s dive straight into all that is good and recent from the wide world of long track speed skating.

VIDEOS

BLOG ENTRIES

At the end of the farce, and after a five day delay, despite being at the top of three very short lists, none of the guys made the final cut. Devastating doesn’t even begin to describe it, especially for Josh, who was our highest-ranked skater in a world cup in ANY event, who had actually qualified, only to be bumped out by an out-of-form skater (who wouldn’t have even made the reserve list this year) on a strange technicality.

RESULTS & REPORTS

Outdoor ovals are a different story, especially those with natural ice. Hard natural ice exposes all technical flaws in a skater. Any inefficiencies are accentuated, especially when you get tired. It is a whole different ball game, because I not only need to focus on racing the race, but I also need to change my tactics. This could include getting lower going into the wind and sitting slightly higher with the wind. If its going to be windy, then I’ll use it to my advantage.

‘RZ on the slideboard, imitating what she sees her daddy doing. She is not facing the right direction, but she is smiling, and that is more important than technique for a little kid! (and for most adults too…)‘- photo from Andrew Love

Photo from Andrew Love

PICTURES

Photo from here

Photo from Tims ProSkateShots

Sjoerd wins- photo from Tims ProSkateShots

Sjoerd crashhhh!!- photo from Tims ProSkateShots

MISC/ STUFF I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT IT’S ABOUT, PROBABLY BECAUSE IT’S NOT IN ENGLISH

And while it’s expected this should be a great Games for Canada in the medal standings, the real rewards are likely to come in 2014 in Sochi and beyond – if we maintain a strong sports system.

I can only tell what went through my mind:

Hope I won’t have a false start,
Hope I wont’t fall during the start,
Hope my opening is decent enough for a fast endtime,
Hope I won’t have a messy crossing,
Hope he doesn’t cross over me at the first crossing in case I had a first
innerlane,
Hope I can make use of my opponent somewhere (drafting behind him during a
crossing),
Hope I have some over at the last straight.
Hope I have a new personal record, or at least a seson best.

OLYMPICS

Its important we remember what a great season these guys have had and are having. When you try to make an Olympic team after only one year in a sport it was never going to be easy. Even Olympic champion Derek Para did not pull that off in his first season. March 2009 we celebrated as these two boys and their team mate Sophie Muir broke into the times needed just to compete at a world cup. It went on from there with constant improvement and even with this non- selection the improvement is not stopping, as we speak the everyone is getting faster and faster.

Photo from Stuart Davis, Vancouver Sun files

By my count, the AP predicts 30 total medals for Canada and 27 each for the United States and Germany. A whopping 15 of Canada’s medals are expected to be gold, with nine going to the U.S. and eight going to Germany.

By SSW | Posted in A Bit Of Sunshine, Article, Blog, Championships, Facilities, Forum, Funny, Inspiration, Interesting, International, Interview, Junior, Long Track, Marathon, National Selection, Olympics, Photos, Race Series, Records, Reports, Results, Skaters, Sport Development, Training, Travel, Upcoming, Video, World Cup | Comments (0)

February 3rd 2010- Short Track Speed Skating News

February 3, 2010

Here’s some of the latest short track speed skating news.

Photo from here

Photo from Maarten Slembrouck

Photo from Valérie Maltais

By SSW | Posted in Advice, Blog, Championships, Events, International, MISC, National Selection, Officiating, Olympics, Photos, Short Track, Skaters, Strategy & Tactics, Television, Upcoming, Video | Comments (0)

February 2nd 2010- Roller Speed Skating News

February 2, 2010

Here are some recent links that will take you into what’s been going on in the world of roller speed skating;

A couple of weeks ago after the N.Z. champs Kalon Dobbin & myself were talking, we got on to the topic of our sports recognition, that many top World Class Cyclists & Ice skaters come out of Inline.We know off all the Ice stories, Theresea Cliff is doing well in the World cup Cycling & I can remember when we lived in Colombia in 1990 / 1991 & my wife Cheryl racing the Medellin team of Ladies cyclists, who were virtually the Colombian ladies road team, headed by Pan American Road Champion Adrianne Muriel, all the team at the time Cheryl had previously raced at World Speed skating championships.

By SSW | Posted in Championships, Coaching, Equipment, Events, Forum, Gear, Indoor, International, Links, Marathon, National Selection, Race Series, Reports, Roller, Skaters, Technique, Upcoming, Video | Comments (0)

February 1st 2010- Long Track Speed Skating News

February 1, 2010

Ok, let’s start the weekend re-cap with long track speed skating news;

The family of nations is equally strange & wonderful during the Olympic games. You can feel intense national pride one moment, chant USA! USA! USA! at the top of your lungs, and the next find yourself granting deep respect and admiration for athletes from all over the world.

You find yourself celebrating with them, after a moment earlier, cheering against them.

Clara Hughes- photo from here

Speed Skating Canada (SSC) wishes to congratulate Clara Hughes (Glen Sutton, QC) on being named Canada’s flag bearer for the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games Opening Ceremony. The announcement was made by the Canadian Olympic Committee (COC) moments ago in Richmond, BC, home of next month’s speed skating competitions.

Andrew Love & a masked friend- photo from Andrew Love

Italian team during World Junior Cup in Baselga di Pine- photo from Passion-For-Skating

By SSW | Posted in A Bit Of Sunshine, Blog, Championships, International, Junior, Long Track, Marathon, Olympics, Photos, Race Series, Results, Skaters, World Cup | Comments (0)

January 27th 2010- Long Track Speed Skating News

January 28, 2010

As the weekend inches closer and closer, I’d like to share lots of links to long track speed skating pictures, reports, results, and more.

Before you set off your journey into the links below, have a look at this great video; Open NK Weissensee (kort).

France’s Pascal Briand recently found out he’ll be able to skate at the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver;

and yesterday i finally learn i will be in vancoucer…it is such a great news for me , i m so thankfull to everybody that helped me so far…i will make message for all soon but now i m still under the CHOCK news…i enjoy it full…i enjoy every second of my training full…

5 years i m training for this…going is a dream and a step…now all my focus will go on doing my best there…that is why now i m training so hard on inline and short track…using the training tools that make me as strong as possible


Photo from Chad Hedrick


Photo from Masters Speed Skating News


Photo from Tims ProSkateShots

Canada’s newest indoor long track speed skating oval, located in Fort St. John BC, home to National Team members Denny and Jay Morrison, will begin the new year by hosting its first ever BC Speed Skating Association (BCSSA) sanctioned event.


Photo from Passion-For-Skating.com

By SSW | Posted in Blog, Championships, Facilities, International, Junior, Long Track, Marathon, Masters, National Selection, News, Olympics, Photos, Reports, Skaters, Television, Video, World Cup | Comments (0)

January 26th 2010- Roller Speed Skating Links & More

January 26, 2010

As the middle of the work-week approaches, it’s time for me to share some links to what’s going on in the roller speed skating world. And so, as it goes on, some news is sad, some is good;

Sorry to be the bearer of horribly bad news. Mary Scott King of Huntington Beach, CA was killed in a tragic snowboarding accident on Saturday the 16th in Telluride, Colorado, while heli-boarding with her boyfriend, Carlo Nafarrette. She skated for me at Team Paradise in the early 90’s, competing both indoors and outdoors. While she hadn’t gotten new skates in years (she was still on her 5 x 84’s), she still skated every now and then. One thing about Mary Scott, she was always better than what she gave herself credit for, both in skating and snowboarding.


Photo from MundoPatin.com


Photo by Mark Virtue


Photo from ASTA

I remember watching the first one in November on live feed and thinking a LOT of the same thoughts that are being posted on here about this event. Everyone that was actually at the Initiation kept telling me what a success it was and how many people showed up to watch. I found that VERY hard to believe.. until I attended this event (tribulation 1) they had this weekend. I promise you- people came in BUNCHESSS to watch this event. The rink was absolutely packed with non-skaters and there was a lot of energy in there. Obviously, that energy is not making its way entirely across the internet and onto your computers. Joey and Miguel are their own biggest critics and are completely aware of that. One big reason that the live feed hasn’t been that fulfilling is because the audio being fed to the online viewers is coming exclusively from the emcee’s mic. It doesn’t sound natural.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Make sure you consult SSW’s events calendar for upcoming events. Please let me know if there are events that need to be added to the calendar.

Planet Adventure now offers Inline Speed Skating events in Indianapolis. With the help of experienced area speed skaters (Indy Speed, Asphalt Beach and Global Inline) and the National Roller Cup (NROC), Planet Adventure will host five events in 2010.

I am please to announce that Marathon Roller of Montreal 2010 will be back this year. Same great fun, same great venue. Confirmed date is for May 9th. More details to come soon.

By SSW | Posted in Advice, Championships, Events, Indoor, Junior, Marathon, National Selection, Off Season, Photos, RIP, Race Series, Reports, Results, Roller, Senior, Skaters, Track, Training, Upcoming, Video, World Championships | Comments (0)

January 25th 2010- Short Track Speed Skating News & Links

January 25, 2010

It’s time that I focus SSW on the world of short track speed skating. Here’s a bit of what’s been happening of late;


Germany’s Tysen Heung- photo from DESGphoto


Photo from DESGphoto


Bulgaria’s Evgenia Radanova- photo from BGNES


Photo from DESGphoto

By SSW | Posted in Championships, International, National Selection, Olympics, Photos, Reports, Results, Short Track, Skaters, Video | Comment (1)

2010-01-24 Long Track Speed Skating News & Links

January 24, 2010

As the weekend draws to a close, here are some links to catch you up on what’s been going on in the long track speed skating world.


Photo by Kirsti Biseth


Photo by Jeff McIntosh/The Canadian Press

The Olympic suits were also introduced a week early. The whole team got onto the ice and skated around, greeting the crowd and shaking hands with the crowd. At one point the crowd started chanting “Go Canada”. It was truly an amazing day. And to see how many kids were not at school that day- wow!

By SSW | Posted in Blog, International, Interview, Junior, Links, Long Track, Marathon, Masters, National Selection, Olympics, Photos, Race Series, Reports, Results, Skaters, Team, Video, World Cup | Comments (0)

January 23rd 2010- Roller Speed News

January 23, 2010

Here’s a bit of news from the world of roller speed skating;


Photo from Roller Sisters


Photo from here

The Masterston 1980 World champs was the end of of a proud era of N. Z. skating & the political offshute saw Peter & Marie Maxwell retire from skating, with International careers still well in front of them, Karen Yorke ( Treolaer ) Marlene Glover ( MacDonald) all World medalists at Masterton & all been World champions, never raced again Internationally.

It was not till 1999 that N.Z. won another World Senior Medal with Kalon Dobbin a Third, in 1996 from memory the first World Junior champs Shane Dobbin won a medal & was robbed blind of the Gold in the Marathon. I see Johnny said that Scott got a Bronze in Adelaide in 1986, I remember the first two were grabbed & some DQ as one was my skater, so not possitive about the Bronze, as I am still irked about the Italian 10 meters back off the pace getting a political gift.

By SSW | Posted in Article, Blog, Championships, Clubs, Equipment, Events, Fundraising, History, Indoor, International, Interview, Marathon, Photos, Reports, Roller, Skaters, Sprint, Technique, Track, Training, Upcoming, Video, Youth | Comments (0)