Experienced veterans were challenged by aspiring rookies the week of October 5 as Bobsleigh Canada Skeleton (BCS) held their annual push testing camp in the Ice House at WinSport.

Approximately 50 athletes participated in both individual and team push tests to show their potential. By achieving a time standard, athletes became eligible to participate at the World Cup level.

The camp was especially competitive as BCS coaches, pilots and staff have made recruitment efforts this past year which included hosting 17 recruitment camps across Canada. Bobsled pilots have also been recruiting athletes to form their own teams in preparation for selection races in Calgary and Whistler.

In order to make this initiative a success, BCS put in a request to the Canadian Sport Institute Calgary (CSI Calgary) for prospective teams to be able to train together and develop team chemistry at the CSI Calgary where the BCS National Team is based.

One athlete who has seen benefits is prospective brakeman Cam Stones. Stones, a former rugby player for McMaster University, moved to Calgary to take advantage of the CSI Calgary’s facilities and expertise. His effort paid off at the push camp, as he pushed 5.13, making the standard for the upcoming team selections in Calgary and Whistler.

For Stones, the advantage of training at the CSI Calgary was obvious. He notes that although “McMaster was world class, I am very lucky to have the opportunity to train with the National Team, especially CSI Calgary’s Lead Strength and Conditioning Coach Quin Sekulich. It pushes me to be better because I see how they train. These guys are monsters!”

Bobsleigh Head Coach Stephan Bosch knows that this arrangement has been very important. “Chemistry is critical for our sport and this will be a huge advantage for the future.”

Like Coach Bosch, two-time Olympic Gold Medallist Kaillie Humphries believes that chemistry is a critical element to a successful bobsled team. She appreciates the CSI Calgary allowing potential teammates to train with her, saying, “Team dynamics are so important. You can kill yourself training but you need a team with trust, commitment, fun, and compatibility. Once we get an athlete in the program, it is so important that they feel a part of the team. As a pilot, knowing I can recruit and that the people I talk to will be a serious consideration by BCS and CSI Calgary makes everything possible.”

Canadian Sport Institute Calgary: @csicalgary
Written by Brittany Schussler: @BSchussler
Photo by Dave Holland: @csicalgaryphoto

As a snowboarder I was elated to be named team alternate for the Vancouver Olympic Winter Games. At that time, I knew I would continue training with the goal of competing in Sochi. Unfortunately, I injured my knee seven months before qualifications. I had spent 15 years of my life pouring my heart and soul into sport and felt like I had nothing to show for it – I was not an Olympian.

Being an observer as my friends lived my dream was exceedingly difficult, but life was about to get even harder. After coming home from Russia, I took stock of my situation. I was 29, Korea was in 4 years, and the possibility of another heartbreak was unthinkable. I was faced with the harsh reality of retirement.

Despite having my Kinesiology degree, something I am really proud I was able to accomplish while competing and completing my yoga teacher training in hopes of finding myself outside of being an athlete, I was still at a loss of what career path might be available to me. I struggled to find a reason to get out of bed in the morning. Nothing was ever going to top the life that I had as a high performance athlete.

In attempts to mask how dejected and lost I felt, I kept myself as busy as I could. At one point I had five jobs. Not knowing what I wanted to do, I did everything, but didn’t fully commit or pursue anything. I was burning out and sadly it was more comfortable than facing my true feelings.

After several tough conversations with Game Plan Advisor, Cara Button at the Canadian Sport Institute Calgary, she forced my hand and made an appointment for counseling. I was diagnosed as clinically depressed. Ironically, the diagnosis was a relief. It meant I was going to get better and there was a reason for feeling the way that I did.

After a few months of transition and career counseling support offered through the Game Plan program, I began to feel better and believed that I was going to overcome this life challenge. As much as I was perplexed about the fact that my perfect career match was bartending... I knew I finally had some answers to my questions.

Soon after, I applied for an extremely competitive job that involved an extensive hiring process. My confidence grew stronger every time I made it through the next level. And just a few weeks ago, I was offered the job of Sales Representative at Bristol-Meyer Squibb - A job I could have only dreamed of a year ago!

Having the support from Game Plan at the Canadian Sport Institute Calgary throughout my transition has truly helped me. If a lesson can be gleaned from my personal experience is that the transition phase does not have to be this difficult. My advice to all athletes is ‘don’t be afraid to ask for help. There are programs and people in place to help you through your transition.’

Do you want to train and develop as a cyclist? You can do that at the Cycling Centre Calgary (CCC).

The CCC, run by the Canadian Sport Institute Calgary (CSI Calgary), has programs for cyclists of all ages and abilities in road, track, cyclocross, mountain and para cycling. Based out of the Olympic Oval at the University of Calgary, the CCC takes athletes through a four-stage pathway: Development, Link, Performance, and High Performance.

The Development stage targets young athletes who do not have racing experience. These athletes begin training three times weekly working towards the Link stage, which aims to fast-track athletes to the Performance level through a more intense training schedule of five days per week.

Once athletes have progressed to the Performance and High Performance stages, the CSI Calgary’s team of sport scientists begin to put athletes through testing and data monitoring.

The specialists work closely with the CCC’s head coach, Philippe Abbott, to provide the athletes with specialized training programs that target their individual goals. Abbott gained his experienced racing professionally on the North American circuit and is also the Alberta provincial cycling coach.

The CCC has cyclists training in all stages of the pathway, giving newcomers the added benefit of interacting with veterans like Kris Dahl. Dahl, an idol to many CCC athletes, coaches the Link group when he is not away competing at big events such as the Tour of Alberta.

The CCC is also home to Liah Harvie and Gabby Traxler, who recently represented Canada in the junior categories at the 2015 UCI Road World Championships. This career stepping-stone will hopefully lead them to success at the senior level, such as that experienced by their predecessors Allison Beveridge and Kirsti Lay.

Beveridge and Lay are key members of Canada’s track pursuit team that won bronze at the World Track Cycling Championship in February and won gold at the 2015 PanAm Games. Beveridge began as a development athlete at the CCC and has diligently worked her way through the pathway. Her progress has culminated in a second world bronze medal in the Scratch Race.

Kirsty Lay, a former speed skater, was fast-tracked along the CCC pathway after being identified as having potential through the CSI Calgary’s Talent Lab. Lay received close monitoring and testing through the CSI Calgary so that Abbott could have extra insight while writing her program.

The CCC is building on its success and hopes to recruit new cyclists who can emulate the success of Harvey, Traxler, Dahl, Beveridge and Lay. To become a member and start down the pathway of your cycling career, visit http://www.csialberta.ca/index.php/athlete-development/cycling-program to register. All potential athletes are offered a free one-month trial, so be sure to come out and give cycling a try!

Canadian Sport Institute Calgary: @csicalgary
Written by Brittany Schussler: @BSchussler
Photo by Dave Holland: @csicalgaryphoto

Not even the stormy skies above the Windy City could spoil Emily Wagner’s Triathlon Junior World Championship debut. The 17 year old from Calgary produced a solid performance that saw her break the one hour barrier for the first time to finish 8th in a race that was rescheduled twice on September 18, so the marquee elite women’s race could be brought forward to avoid the incoming thunderstorms. It was the best result of the day for a Canadian female and the first top 10 finish in the Junior event since 2012.

A relative newcomer to the sport of Triathlon, Wagner entered her first event in the summer of 2013, quickly establishing herself as one of the top junior racers in the country. In the short time she has been competing she has only finished outside the top eight once in a triathlon following a crash during the bike segment. She earned a place on the World Championship team in May with a podium performance in the qualification event, the CAMTRI Pan American Triathlon Championship held in Monterrey, Mexico.

Her final warm up race in Edmonton at the beginning of September took place in temperatures barely above zero and after struggling to remove her bike helmet in transition she lost time to her opponents and finished fourth. The result didn’t rattle her confidence.

“This was my first World Championships so I had no expectations going into this race,” said Wagner. “I was starting in the middle of the field and I’d been warned that it would be a rough swim. There was a lot of hitting and pushing in the water. I decided beforehand not to over think my race. I just needed to follow my instincts and go for it.”

A strong swimmer, she exited the water with the lead pack and settled into a pack on the bike that worked together over a highly technical bike course to try to limit the advantage of the German and American triathletes Laura Lindemann and Taylor Knibb who broke away early and ultimately claimed the top two positions on the podium. Wagner has worked hard with her coaches to develop her bike handling and positioning skills over the last year and was out of harms way when a mistake by a Japanese competitor brought down her Canadian teammate Emy Legault on one of the corners. She matched her best time for the 5 km run to make the top eight.

For the last two years Wagner has received sport science and sport medicine support through the Canadian Sport Institute Calgary’s Talent Lab. The Talent Lab was established to provide support in the critical early stages of their development to athletes identified as having the potential to be future World and Olympic medallists.

Wagner’s coach Cal Zaryski is pleased with the progress she is making. “Emily is still relatively new to the sport but she raced like a veteran with the heart of a lion,” said Zaryski. “She’s a long way from her full potential but she is such a good racer she gets everything possible out of the tool kit she has at the moment. We’re working on a long term plan to keep her healthy and build her structural tolerance so that she’s at her absolute best a few years down the road.”

For more information on the Canadian Sport Institute Calgary Talent Lab, please contact:

Paula Jardine, Lead, Athlete Development

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