This yr was an exception yr for sports activities in Prince George.
It was a heck of a yr for sports activities in Prince George.
The town noticed its first home-grown Olympic medalist, hosted a serious worldwide sporting occasion, watched the debut season of its first Canadian Junior Soccer League staff, hosted the most effective younger athletes within the province, and cheered on its college males’s soccer staff whereas it made Canada West
Introduced in chronological order, listed below are the High 5 Prince George sports activities moments of 2022. Vote in a Citizen online poll to inform us what you assume was the highest sports activities second of the yr.
O’DINE WINS OLYMPIC BRONZE
Prince George snowboard cross racer Meryeta O’Dine wasn’t content material simply being the first Prince George athlete to win an Olympic medal – she did it twice.
Throughout the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics in February, O’Dine made historical past by successful a bronze within the particular person girls’s snowboard cross competitors, ending third within the large closing behind American veteran Lyndsey Jacobellis and Chloe Trespeuch of France.
For the 24-year-old racer, successful the medal was conquer accidents and loss. Her first Olympic expertise throughout the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang, South Korea in 2018 earlier than it started, after she fell and suffered a concussion throughout a coaching run. Then a compression fracture in her backbone ended her 2019 season. In 2020, her older brother Brandon died of most cancers.
O’Dine’s grit was on show once more, throughout the debut of mixed-team snowboard cross competitors on the Olympics.
O’Dine’s associate, Eliot Grondin of Sainte-Marie, Que., arrange her up for fulfillment, by ending third in his warmth – a second behind the chief, and 0.23 sec. behind the second-place racer. However as she landed a leap, Italian racer Caterina Carpano got here crashing down on her again, sending them each sprawling into the snow.
O’Dine bear-crawled to the highest of the berm and managed to get again on her ft to complete 5 seconds forward of Carpano, winning her and Grondin a second Olympic medal every on the video games.
2022 WORLD WOMEN’S CURLING CHAMPIONSHIP
It took six years to occur, however in March Prince George hosted the 2022 BTK Tires & OK Tire World Women’s Curling Championship.
The town was anticipated to host the occasion March 14-22, 2020. However on March 12 the event was cancelled on the advice of B.C. provincial well being officer Dr. Bonnie Henry, after the World Well being Group declared COVID-19 a worldwide pandemic on March 11.
The return of the occasion additionally signalled the start of a return to regular, following years of pandemic restrictions.
“It was postponed two years in the past and I inform you it was well worth the wait, they’ve actually executed an outstanding job, it’s been actually excellent,” World Curling Federation president Kate Caithness mentioned, following the nine-day event. “That is the primary time we’ve had correct followers for the reason that pandemic started and so they’ve been nice.
Groups from Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Japan, Korea, Norway, Scotland, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey and america competed within the occasion, which was televised in 30 nations, and webcast stay around the globe. Switzerland gained gold, Korea silver and Canada defeated Sweden for bronze.
2022 B.C. SUMMER GAMES
Roughly 2,800 younger athletes from throughout the province, together with lots of of coaches, officers, relations and followers, gathering in Prince George for 2022 B.C. Summer Games in July.
The four-day event featured competitions in 18 occasions at venues all through and outdoors town. Occasions included 3-on-3 basketball, creative swimming, athletics, baseball, basketball, seaside volleyball, field lacrosse, canoe and kayak occasions, equestrian and para-equestrian, subject lacrosse, golf, rowing, rugby, crusing, soccer, softball, swimming, para swimming and particular Olympics swimming, towed water sports activities, triathlon, volleyball and wrestling.
In preparation for the video games, the Metropolis of Prince George constructed new beach volleyball courts and made enhancements to different amenities across the metropolis.
Athletes from the Cariboo-Northeast area, together with Prince George, won a total of 33 medals throughout the video games: 10 gold, 10 silver and 13 bronze.
The occasion introduced an estimated 5,000 visitors to Prince George and pumped an estimated $2 million into town’s economic system, after two years of pandemic restrictions had damage town’s hospitality sector.
KODIAKS TAKE THE FIELD
In August, the Prince George Kodiaks took the sphere at Masich Place Stadium for his or her debut home game in opposition to the Kamloops Broncos.
The Kodiaks compete within the B.C. Junior Soccer Convention of the Canadian Junior Soccer League – the highest-level of soccer ever performed within the metropolis.
Though the Kodiaks completed their debut season sixth within the seven-team convention with a 1-9 file, and later cut ties with head coach and director of football operations Keon Raymond, it nonetheless marked a soccer first for town.
TIMBERWOLVES’ HISTORIC SEASON
In September, UNBC Timberwolves striker Michael Henman made Canada West historical past by scoring hat tricks in two consecutive games.
Henman scored 19 objectives whole for the season, tying the convention’s single-season particular person file and serving to the Timberwolves to a team-best 8-5-3 season file.
Henman was named the Canada West Conference male soccer player of the year, for his contributions on the sphere.
Staff coach Steve Simonson was named the Canada West and 2022 USports Fox40 Coach of the Year for his management of the staff.
Henman was a finalist for the nationwide participant of the yr however was edged within the voting by Christopher Campoli of Ontario Tech College in Oshawa.
