NIPAWIN, MELFORT, HUMBOLDT — Three Northeast residents will be among the 316 athletes Team Saskatchewan is sending to PEI to compete in the Canada Winter Games.
The games will take place from Feb. 18 to March 5.
Ty Annand of Nipawin skies with the Wapiti Ski Club and will be competing in Alpine Sking. His coach, Wade Annand, will also be technical support during the games. His most recent athletic accomplishments in my sport was in 2022 at the Aessissppi Manitoba Giant Slalom finals, placing 3rd. He also competed in the SK Cup Slalom Finals and came in first place. His goals for the game would be to finish in the top 20 for Giant Slalom and top 30 for Slalom. His personal best was first in SK Cup Finals in Slalom in 2022. Ty credits his family for pushing him to the sport of Alpine skiing
Taylor Downey of Melfort is competing in Karate. She trains with the Melfort Shintani Wado Kai Karate Club in Melfort. Hercoach is Brad Berns. Her goals for the games are to have fun and score at least one point each match.
“My role model is Coach Laszlo who lead our kumite workouts," Downey said. “I got to see him spar for the first time when I was just getting into competing in local tournaments and it inspired me to try to become as fast and clean his sparing techniques were and still are. He has such a positive attitude in and out of the ring which is something I really admire.”
She said her younger brother joined karate because my parents wanted him to be more active, within that year my dad and I also joined to encourage him to keep going in karate.
"At the age of 10 within that first year I joined I fell in love with karate and once my dad and brother quit, I kept with it and have been in this sport for seven years. I’ve made some of my closest friends through karate and it has given me self-confidence."
Marie Millette of Humboldt is 16 years old and will compete in gymnastics. Millette started doing gymnastics when she was three and always been passionate about the sport. She has competed at the Elite Canada four times, Canadian Championships (Nationals) four times, and has also competed at other competitions across Canada, in the United States, and in France.
Her goals she has set for the Canada Winter Games is to hopefully make the All-Around final, and soak in the experience with her teammates.
Athletes who compete at the Canada Games represent the country’s next generation of national, international, and Olympic and Paralympic champions. Team Sask alumni Mark McMorris, Catriona LeMay Doan, can all count their previous Canada Games experiences as a stepping stone to the Olympic or Paralympic Games.
To keep up to date on all the action throughout the Canada Games, go to https://www.2023canadagames.ca/.
