Going to the Games

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This article was published 09/02/2011 (5753 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A look at the 19 athletes and coaches from the Westman area who will take part in the 2011 Canada Winter Games in Halifax:

 

FEMALE HOCKEY

Ashleigh Brykaliuk, Brandon — Brykaliuk plays her midget hockey with Winnipeg’s Balmoral Hall Blazers and also brings Canada Games experience into this year’s event. Brykaliuk, 15, previously competed in athletics at the 2008 Canada Summer Games.

Jennifer More, Deloraine — Previously a member of Manitoba’s under-18 team, the 18-year-old More won silver with the Saskatchewan-based Notre Dame Hounds at last year’s Esso Cup national championship. Her brother Cory won silver in men’s hockey at the 2007 Games.

Kiara DeKezel, Deloraine — The 17-year-old captain of the Westman Wildcats midget team, DeKezel was a member of the Wildcats squad thatwon the 2009 national championship. This season, De Kezel is more than a point-per-game scorer for the Wildcats.

Skye Kelly, Brandon — The 16-year-old makes her first appearance for Team Manitoba in the Canada Games after previously playing in last year’s Manitoba Games as well as at the 2009 under-18 nationals.

Halli Krzyzaniak, Neepawa — Krzyzaniak, who just celebrated her 16th birthday, currently plays in the Pursuit of Excellence program in Kelowna, B.C., and suited up in the 2010 junior women’s Challenge Cup and previously has competed in softball at the Manitoba Games.

Tony Franklin (coach) Deloraine — Franklin, who has more than two decades of coaching experience, takes on the Manitoba team after having previously worked in the province’s under-18 female Program of Excellence. A former Brandon University Bobcats hockey player and coach, Franklin is currently the head coach of the Deloraine Colts high school hockey team.

 

MALE HOCKEY

Daylon Creasy, Carberry — A member of the Southwest Cougars Midget AAA team, Creasy was a fifth-round selection of the Western Hockey League’s Calgary Hitmen in last year’s bantam draft. The 15-year-old forward has six goals and 16 points in 40 games of his rookie season with the Cougars.

Troy Leslie (coach) Melita — The Cougars head coach takes on another coaching role this winter with Team Manitoba after having also served as the assistant coach on the 2003 squad in Bathurst, N.B. An assistant coach on Team West at the 2006 World Under-17 championship, Leslie has coached the Cougars to a 29-8-0-4 record for first place in the West Division of the Manitoba AAA Midget Hockey League.

 

SPEEDSKATING

Raelene Sawatzky-Dyck, Brandon — The 17-year-old Neelin High School student finished second overall at the provincial long-track championships in January and will be part of the first three-skater Westman Speed Skating Club contingent at a Canada Games since 1999.

Hewson Elliott, Brandon — Elliott, 17, qualified for both the long-track and short-track events, but chose to compete in long-track in Halifax. Elliott qualified for short-track at November’s Prairie Dog meet in Souris and for the long-track at a subsequent meet in Calgary.

Taryn Dyer, Rivers — An 18-year-old freshman at Brandon University, Dyer also skates out of the Westman club and competed at the 2009 Canadian Mass Start Championships. She was third overall at the provincial long-track championships in January and will race in the short-track variety in Halifax.

 

FIGURE SKATING

Mercedes McLean, MacGregor — The 17-year-old Skate Brandon member has been skating for 13 years and been a member of the provincial team for the past three. McLean, who competed at the 2010 provincial Games, will be skating in the novice ladies event and will be joined by Skate Brandon teammates Madison McCallum of Portage and Brooklyn Parker of Winkler.

Tammy McKay, Brandon (coach) — McKay has four decades of experience as a coach and athlete and returns to the Canada Games for the third time as a coach. She was a part of the 2003 and 2007 Manitoba teams and competed in the 1975 and 1979 Games, winning a silver medal. McKay is also a national-level coach in synchronized skating.

MaryAnn Penner, Douglas (coach) — Another Skate Brandon coach, Penner has been in the sport as a coach and competitor for 40 years and was involved in the 2010 Manitoba Winter Games.

 

TARGET SHOOTING

Caroline Sims, Minnedosa — The 17-year-old is now in her fourth year of shooting, having taken women’s sharpshooter silver and junior team bronze at last year’s Toronto Grand Prix.

 

PARA-NORDIC SKIING

Slade Doyle, Brandon — The 35-year-old, who was born and raised in Wawanesa, takes his first crack at competitive cross-country skiing after success in the sport of amputee hockey. Doyle has won two gold medals at World Standing Amputee Hockey Championships and will compete in standing free skate-ski, which allows him to compete without the use of prosthetics.

 

CROSS-COUNTRY SKIING

Kieran Baird, Rossburn — The 20-year-old Augustana University student previously competed in the 2007 Canada Winter Games in Whitehorse and won medals at lastyear’s Canadian university championships and Western Canadian championships.

Jordie Baird, Rossburn — The 17-year-old student at Rossburn Collegiate Institute finished first in his division at last year’s provincial cross-country ski championships and was third at Western Canadians. Baird lives and trains in Riding Mountain National Park.

 

BIATHLON

Rachel Koroscil, Sandy Lake — Now in her fifth year competing in the sport, the University of Manitoba student already has a couple of notable achievements. Koroscil, 19, was third at last year’s Western Canadian championships and was the Miriam Bedard Award winner for best aggregate time at last year’s National Cadet Championships.