Tomorrow as the flame is lit and the second Summer Youth Olympic Games are declared open, five BC Games alumni will stand amongst the talented young athletes chosen to represent Team Canada.
The Youth Olympic Games, which run from August 16 – 28, will feature over 3500 athletes, ages 15-18, from 205 countries competing in 28 different sports. A fairly new addition to the Olympic family, these Games are considered a key stepping stone for athletes to go on to compete in the Olympics Games.
Alex Brent, a kayaker from Dewdney, competed at the 2012 BC Summer Games, the 2013 Canada Summer Games, and just this May won his first national kayaking medal. The 17-year-old surprised even himself with his results at the Canoe Kayak Canada national team trials, as he unexpectedly beat out higher ranked 18-year-old athletes, earning him a spot on the Junior National Team. Earlier this summer, Brent represented Canada at the World Junior Championships in Hungary, and he is now Canada’s sole male kayaker competing in Nanjing.
Port Coquitlam’s Brittni Wolcyk also competed at the 2012 BC Summer Games, but unlike Brent, the Youth Olympics will not be her first international competition. Wolcyk represented Canada last year at the World Youth Track and Field Championships in Ukraine and earlier this year, she won gold in javelin at the 2014 North American Youth Olympic Trials.
Lauren Kerr of Abbotsford is another alumnus of the 2012 BC Summer Games and is the lone player from British Columbia competing as part of Canada’s women’s rugby team in Nanjing. Kerr, who started playing rugby just four years ago, captained the U-18 provincial team to gold at the Los Vegas High School Invitational Sevens this past January.
Tsawwassen’s Nicole and Meghan McNamara competed at the BC Summer Games two years earlier than their fellow alumni, just one year after they started playing beach volleyball. The twins, now 17, drew from their experience at the BC Games and went on to rise to the podium at several major national competitions, including the 2013 Canada Summer Games. Earlier this month they captured their first international medal at the FIVB U-19 world championships in Portugal.
The BC Winter and BC Summer Games are a training ground for British Columbia's best developing athletes and provide an important first multi-sport games experience. The athlete development pathway also includes competing for Team BC at the Canada Games. Dylan French, who will be Canada’s flag bearer at the Nanjing 2014 Youth Olympic Games, won two medals at the 2013 Canada Winter Games.