This year the B.C. Winter Games will be held in Mission, Feb. 20 to 23. The community will rally over 2,500 volunteers and will host up to 2,220 athletes, coaches and officials from across the province.
There will be 18 different sports for athletes to compete in: archery, badminton, basketball-special olympics, basketball-wheelchair, biathlon, curling, diving, figure skating, gymnastics, hockey, judo, karate, netball,, skiing-alpine, skiing-cross country, skiing-freestyle, speed skating and ringette.
For those of you who many not know, ringette is a Canadian game that was created in 1963 by Sam Jacks from North Bay, Ontario. It was originally designed as an alternative on-ice game for females, but has since evolved into a two-gender sport with an emphasis on passing, speed, and team play. It has also gone international, with several other countries around the world joining in on the fun. The game is played similarly to hockey, but instead of a puck, the players pass around a blue rubber ring.
There are 12 athletes from the North Thompson Valley who will be participating this year.
• The Thompson-Okanagan netball team with members: Jenessa Jones (McLure), Breann and Chelsey Fischer (Little Fort), Jenny Jim (Little Fort), Vanessa Balatti, Flora Copley, Ariel Fennell, Chelsea Lloyd, Jillian McInnes, and Jamie Proulx (all from Barriere), as well as head coach Kim Fennell and official Alex Harpauer (both from Barriere), and adult supervisor Seana Trimble (Kamloops).
• Allison Borrow (Clearwater) as part of the Thompson-Okanagan girls hockey team.
• Beckett Hooton in the alpine skiing-competition.
