A former gold-medal winning Canadian Olympian dropped by the Spruce City Skating Club this week to help the students with their flexibility training as they prepare for the skating season.
Lori Fung won the first-ever gold medal awarded in rhythmic gymnastics during the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. For the past decade Fung has worked with numerous athletes on their flexibility in Vancouver. When her son Alexander Methorst was invited to Prince George last weekend to tryout for the Prince George Cougars, Fung gave Spruce City director of skating Rory Allen a call to see if she could work with some of his athletes. It didn't take Allen long to let his athletes know about an impromptu session Monday afternoon at the Elksentre Arena, which about a dozen skaters showed up for to work with the 2004 Canadian Sports Hall of Fame inductee. Fung was inducted in the B.C. Sports Hall of Fame in 1985. "Several years ago I came up to Prince George and did a figure skating seminar," recalled Fung. "I saw so many fabulous skaters up here with a lot of potential. "What I was doing [Monday] is the off ice flexibility program that's my specialty," she added. "I work with not only figure skaters, but with gymnasts, dancers, trick skateboarders and hockey players all needing the component of flexibility. Some need it for the aesthetic value, others need it for injury prevention. Flexibility is the root of all sport." She said that rhythmic gymnastics is known for it's flexibility so it's a natural fit for her to teach other athletes to learn how to stretch their muscles to achieve a more flexible body. Among the Spruce City skaters at the workout was Danielle Sidsworth, a 17-year-old novice skater who was surprised with some of the exercises. "We learned how to go deeper into a stretch, which hurts, but it feels good especially knowing you get more flexible," said Sidsworth. After the hour-long session was over, Fung pulled out her gold medal, allowing a few of the students to put it around their necks. "It was really cool, different than I expected," said Sidsworth. "It was a lot heavier." Fung said her memories of winning the medal came floating back when she was watching the London Games. "It brings back the feelings and the memories like they were yesterday," said the 49 year old. "It's never going to change. The goose bumps that I got when I was watching an athlete prepare to go for their event. It was 28 years ago but I still remember." She said she would like to return to Prince George for another flexibility session with the Spruce City skaters this winter and, perhaps she'll be visiting her son a year from now. Methorst, 14, was among the early cuts from the Cougars and he returned to Vancouver to prepare for the final tryout with the B.C. Major Midget League's Greater Vancouver Canadians. "Maybe they'll watch him this year," said Fung about her middle son. "I think what he learned here is going to take him a step up and I really think it's going to help him." After being recognized for 28 years as a gold medal winning Olympian, Fung said she enjoys her new role watching her three boys fulfill their sports dreams. "Now I'm a hockey mom," she said. To see the original article CLICK HERE
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The tearing down of the Kin Centre has resulted in the building up of a beneficial new relationship between the Prince George Figure Skating Club and the Spruce City Skating Club.
As the Kin Centre goes through partial demolition and reconstruction for use during the 2015 Canada Winter Games and beyond, ice space in the facility has been at a premium. That being the case, the two local skating clubs -- traditional rivals -- merged for the running of a six-week summer school. The pooling of coaches and skaters from the organizations had a positive impact on athlete development and that is reflected in the fact that 11 area skaters will compete at B.C. Summer Skate from Thursday through Sunday in Burnaby. "This is definitely a record [for participation]," said Rory Allen, director of skating for Spruce City. "Last year, Spruce City as a club had two." The P.G. and Spruce City clubs are planning a permanent merger in the near future. Allen said it's "very close" to happening. Other summer school coaches were Andrea Ludditt, Nicole Collins, Jennifer Auston, Courtney Powney, Allison Aikens, Jim Douglas and Alicia Mettauer. Summer Skate is a provincial Super Series event and, on a much smaller scale, will have the look and feel of a Skate Canada. The competition will be broadcast online at skatinginbc.com. "The live streaming is similar to what you'd see on TV," Allen said. "They'll have their names announced and it's all professional. They'll have a little area they go in to hear the marks. It's really, really cool for the kids." The highest-level local skater going to B.C. Summer Skate is 16-year-old Danielle Sidsworth. She'll be on her blades in the novice women's category. "The Olympic level is senior, below that's junior and below that's novice, so she's getting up there," Allen said. "Danielle's chances [at Summer Skate] are high. She has developed great consistency on her double-double combinations. She carries herself well and she's got great coverage across the ice. It's great to do two crossovers and be halfway across the ice. She's one of those types of girls that people just want to watch, before they even do any elements." In the pre-novice women's division, Prince George will be represented by Chelsea Raful and Samara Thew. Then there's Justin Hampole, who will do his best to impress the judges in the juvenile men's U-11 category. Hampole is so talented he's on the verge of moving up to pre-novice. "There are no competitors in his [current] group because he's so good at such a young age," Allen said. "He's starting triple jumps at age 10. In pre-novice, he'll have the chance to qualify for nationals. The average age in pre-novice is about 15 or 16 but Justin has the right combination of everything. He has some natural talent, a ton of drive and determination and he listens very well to his coaches." The local contingent going to Summer Skate is rounded out by Emma Bajestani (juvenile women's U-14), Fort St. James's Sydnee Schlamp (Star 4), Ally Norum (Star 3), Jayna Mason (Star 3), Asia Gill (Star 3), Myah Milner (Star 2) and Valyce Mamic (Star 2). The nine-year-old Milner and eight-year-old Mamic are from Fort St. John and Quesnel respectively but have been training in Prince George. "Myah stayed with a grandmother, and to not see her family and be home for more than six weeks is pretty astounding," Allen said. "Valyce, she travels up through the entire winter from Quesnel, several times a week, and she spent her summer here as well. There's a lot of dedication at a really young age, which is quite a big change for figure skating in Prince George." To see the original article CLICK HERE With a record-high five competitive skaters attending the 2012 CNCR regional championship the Spruce City Skating Club returned from the competition in Quesnel, March 9 to 11, with 12 medals overall.
The Prince George based figure skating club sent a total of 12 skaters to the winter finale. Olivia Trampuh earned a pair of silver medals in bronze spins and the preliminary freeskate with 19.83 points, while her teammate Sydnee Schlamp jumped eight places from her last competition to place fourth in the preliminary freeskate. Audyn Mettauer won gold in the pre-preliminary, while Quesnel skater Valyce Mamic skated to bronze. Mamic travels to Prince George every week for lessons with Spruce City coach Rory Allen. The Quesnel skater took first place in the primary spins category with 4.5 points, while Mettauer won her second gold in the preliminary elements program. Olivia Wankling earned the silver behind Mettauer. Wankling also took gold in the primary creative level and finished eighth in the preliminary freeskate. Competitive skaters In the juvenile women category, Emma Bajestani won gold, improving her points total from 18.06 to 22.70. Justin Hampole took the gold in the juvenile men's group. Chelsea Raful ended her winter season with the silver medal and improving her personal best score to 59.04, while earning the senior artistic award at the regional championship. Spruce City had two pre-novice women competing in Quesnel where Danielle Sidsworth won bronze and Shaelynne Macaulay finished fourth. Sidsworth won a second bronze medal in the silver interpretive event. To read more CLICK HERE Chelsea Raful has spun further than other Prince George figure skaters this season.
The Spruce City Figure Skating Club (SCFSC) member is the only skater from the city to qualify for the Zone 8 team at the British Columbia Winter Games in Vernon from Feb. 23 to 26. "I think it's really cool," she said shyly. "It's going to be a great experience." There are four skaters on the Zone 8 figure skating team. SCFSC director of skating and coach Rory Allen said the challenge for Raful in Vernon is to improve her spins, score a combined score in the short and long programs of 70 and land three double lutz's. The 14-year-old's personal best was 55, which she scored at sectionals this season. "It's always good to set high goals for yourself," said Allen. "We've been working on confidence with Chelsea." Prince George doesn't have a reputation for having its skaters medal outside of its own zone, something Allen said he's determined to change. "It's always been an issue in P.G. about not being competitive, so we're working on confidence with all the skaters," he said. "To medal outside the region is a goal we're working on for the future." After she returns from Vernon Raful has the regional event in Quesnel from March 9 to 11 to prepare for while getting read to take her novice skate test on the final weekend of March. If Raful passes she will be the highest active level figure skater in Prince George. Hampole oozes confidence Raful would be set if she could bottle some of the confidence oozing from teammate Justin Hampole's pores. The 10 year old won gold at the Ogopogo freeskate competition in Penticton from Feb. 10 to 12 with a personal best of 28.32 - a full 10 points ahead of the second-place skater. "I like to perform in front of crowds," said the gregarious skater. "It makes me feel happy." In addition to winning gold, Hampole took his juvenile test in Penticton and has doubled his scores since the B.C. Summer Skate last August in Vancouver. Allen said there's many benefits to having Hampole at Spruce City. "He's a good ambassador to get other boys involved," said Allen. Hampole's goal for the regional skate is to achieve another personal best, while his long-term ambition is to skate like his idol Kurt Browning. "He's a really good performer and makes you feel like you're actually skating with him." To see the original article CLICK HERE A change of perspective to a more competitive focus is seeing results for Prince George figure skaters.
The Spruce City Skating Club can boast a successful start to their winter season, with skaters who are racking up the medals in major competitions. In addition with learn-to-skate and enrichment programs for hockey and ringette players, Spruce City is rebuilding its way to dominance in the figure skating field. Most recently, pre-juvenile skater Justin Hampole placed second at his first-ever CompetitiveSkate provincial competition, making him the only skater who trains in northern B.C. to win a medal. "Justin has made major strides this year," said Rory Allen, Spruce City's director of skating and head coach. In less than a year, the 10 year old has more than doubled his scores and moved up three levels. "When I first started with him, he had a cheated [under rotated] single axle and now we've got the double sow, double toe, double loop and he's landind the double lutz - just under rotated - and he's actually started the double axle. In less than a year, we've made major progress. Typically, a skater might move up one level per year or every other year, but Allen said Hampole has progressed so quickly, he didn't want to hold him back. "My focus and direction as a coach and director of skating for the club is moving the club forward in the way I was trained," said Allen, who joined Spruce City in the spring. Allen is a former junior national team member and international competitor. He said creating a competitive training centre locally takes a shift in attitude. "It's not just that we're a smaller community, it's more the energy you put in and where you put your focus." That focus has brought coach Bruno Delmaestro - who trains skaters in Vancouver for international competitions - to Prince George to lead a seminar. The club is also venturing out to some of the higher-level events which area skaters haven't historically competed in. "Getting them to have that sort of exposure, getting the club name out there, getting the Prince George name out there is kind of one of my big focuses," Allen said. Along with Hampole, Spruce City sent Shaelynne Macaulay, Danielle Sidsworth and Chelsea Raful to the provincial competition. Earlier in the season Macaulay brought home a second-place finish in a regional match. This built on the success of the summer season, where a group of skaters including Hampole, Sidsworth, Emma Bajestani, and Olivia Wankling made further strides at a provincial competition in Kamloops. "We're starting to go farther and farther to compete with the top skaters in B.C., if not western Canada," Allen said. "And the field is super thick. Skating is super popular in Canada." That popularity is where the club is hoping to make inroads on growing the base of competitive figure skating in a region where it's largely recreational. Allen said the club is on the right track by having a team of coaches who specialize in different areas to enrich the skaters' development, but their work is still in its infancy. "We have huge strides to make in terms of membership, acquisition and retention. We have to keep our focus on grassroots development and getting more and more of Prince George kids involved in skating," Allen said. "That's definitely a huge area of focus for us and that's our future." To see the Chelsea Raful's blades are sharp and she's hoping to make the cut.
The 13-year-old from Prince George is in Kelowna for 2011 BMO B.C./Yukon section figure skating championships where she's entered in the pre-novice women's competition. Raful, a member of the Spruce City Skating Club, began Thursday with the short program and will be back on the ice today for the free skate. Thursday's results were not available. Last year in Richmond as a first-year pre-novice, Raful placed 47th. In 2008, her first year in the competitive stream, she placed seventh in the pre-juvenile class at the section meet in Nanaimo. A top placing this weekend will guarantee Raful a spot in the BMO Skate Canada Eastern/Western Challenge set for Mississauga, Ont., Dec. 1-5. To see the original article CLICK HERE It was a busy summer for the Spruce City Skating Club.
Rory Allen, director of skating and a team coach at the club, said several of the club's skaters have made huge strides competing with some of the best figure skaters in western Canada and the world at events in Edmonton and Vancouver. "It was a really big eye-opener for them," said Allen about the team's accomplishments. Emma Bajestani, 11, and Chelsea Raful, 13, both competed at the Wild Rose competition in Leduc, Alta., two weeks ago. Raful, competing in the pre-novice women's category finished 12th out of 25 skaters. Last weekend, Justin Hampole, 10, Olivia Wankling, 8, and Danielle Sidworth, 14, took part in the British Columbia summer skate event, an international competition in Burnaby. Sidworth placed 31st (out of 73 skaters) for pre-novice women -- a category only three levels below Olympic competition. Allen said the showing was impressive, because Sidworth just recently moved up to the level. Hampole placed seventh for pre-juvenile men, while Wankling was eighth for pre-preliminary women. The summer events aren't unusual for skaters or clubs that want to improve their standards, said Allen. "When you want to play with the big boys and girls, it's important to compete in the summer," he said. The skaters will leave the ice behind for the next couple of weeks to take part in some theory classes and off ice training of ballet and gymnastics at UNBC. Allen said everyone will be back on the ice after Labour Day. "I'm just really optimistic about the future of skating in Prince George," he said. The club is currently registering new members for all levels -- from age two to adults To see the original article A former top Canadian figure skater and international performer has taken over the head coach position of the Spruce City Skating Club.
Coach Rory Allen skated with the Canadian national team for three years from 2001-02 to 2004-05. Allen started this week with the local club as the head coach and skating director. "I've been coaching for eight years now - all in northern B.C. I've coached in Quesnel and Fraser Lake as well," Allen said. "Recently I was hired by Royal Caribbean for their shows. I just returned from there in September of last year." Allen said he hopes to build the club's membership by focusing on skill development and providing opportunities for skaters of all ages. "I trained in Coquitlam in one of the top skating clubs in the country. When I start off with young skaters, it starts with developing that passion... for being on the ice," he said. "The skating club is the starting point for all ice sports - hockey, ringette, power skating... regardless of the sport, it's the place to start." Building young skaters confidence on the ice though skill development is a proven strategy promoted by Skate Canada, he said. In Fraser Lake, that resulted in the club growing from just 12 members when he arrived to 60 when he left. "I'd like them to stay involved to at least [high school] graduation. And in Prince George there is a college and university, so maybe even longer," he said. "We do a lot of off-ice training as well. I've followed a lot of European off-ice training methods that I've learned and seen from my fellow performers." Prince George has a low per-capita participation in the club, compared to Fraser Lake and Quesnel where he last coached, he said. "In a town like Fraser Lake, with [approximately] 1,125 people, I had 35 in my advanced program," he said. "The participation rate in Prince George is really low. There is still some gaps at this time." Allen said during his time coaching in Fraser Lake and Quesnel he fell in love with the North. "Prince George is the hub of the North," he said. "I'm really hoping to establish myself here... and stay quite awhile." For more information about the Spruce City Skating Club, go online to www.skateprincegeorge.com To read the original article CLICK HERE |
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