The team at the start of their journey to Hokkaido.
The Alberta – Hokkaido Sport Exchange is under way. Today, Alberta Amateur Speed Skating Association sent twenty young skaters, with eight coaches and other leaders, to Hokkaido Japan for a sport and cultural exchange.of our sister province Hokkaido.
Monday evening finds us now half way through our adventure in Hokkaido. It has been a busy and eventful four days, with skating, travel, touring and cultural events. Our Japanese hosts have been generous, and it is obvious that they have given considerable thought and planning to our visit. Our days are full, and the skaters (and adults) are exhausted by the end of each day.
Team Alberta at Welcome Banquet.
We arrived in Chitose (Sapporo’s airport) late on Thursday evening, and were bused immediately to a nearby hotel. Most of us slept well that night, but Friday morning arrived early. We soon found ourselves back on the bus, traveling into Hokkaido’s agricultural interior, Obihiro in the Tokachi Region. We travelled through a range of small mountains and then entered a broad plateau. There we saw farms and farming communities, making it clear why Alberta is twinned with this Japanese prefecture. We arrived in downtown Obihiro, and that afternoon the twenty Alberta athletes practiced at the city’s indoor speed skating oval, which was completed in 2009. Friday evening was the formal welcome banquet, with gift presentations from the Hokkaido Amateur Sport Association, the Hokkaido Skating Federation, the City of Obihiro, and the Obihiro Board of Education.
Team Alberta at Welcome Banquet.
On Saturday and Sunday (Nov 5 and 6) Alberta skaters joined approximately 300 skaters from across Japan in a long track competition at the Obihiro Oval. Without a doubt, Japanese skaters are physically strong and technically skilled. In a number of cases (Cooper Hunter, Jordan Henkelman, Matthew Pariseau and Camden Chabot), Alberta skaters were pushed to new personal bests. It was a remarkable experience for these young Alberta skaters to skate in a Japanese competition, and to be able to read their names in Japanese on the oval’s results board.
Danielle Wallish in Obihiro.
At the end of the competition on Sunday, the group of Alberta skaters and leaders, with Hokkaido hosts, made a brief stop at a small (very small) speed skating equipment store in Obihiro, where the shop owner had two Japanese national team skin suits on display (but not for sale!). The suits that were for sale were the latest from the Mizuno sports equipment company, and many cost in excess of C$1000. We then traveled by bus to Kushiro, a port city on Hokkaido’s southeast coast. Dinner was at the hotel’s 17th floor restaurant which provided a spectacular view of the city.
Monday saw the 20 Alberta athletes back on the ice, for a training session at Kushiro’s beautiful outdoor oval, the site of the 2003 ISU Junior World Championships. On Monday afternoon athletes and leaders toured Kushiro’s Japanese crane reserve centre, where this beautiful bird, once thought to be extinct, is bred and protected. Alberta teens (and adults) were struck by the beauty of this large bird, and its distinctive call. We were honored to have Mr. Takahashi, the founder of this centre, lead the tour and demonstrate his amazing ability to communicate with these magnificent birds and explain their significance in Japanese culture. We then toured the wetlands of Kushiro, seeing about 40 cranes in the wild.
Traditional Japanese caligraphy lesson.
The Alberta delegation then moved from this natural environment to Hokuyo high school in Kushiro, where many of the athletes whom they competed against attend high school, and where Coach Sakaki works as a physical education teacher. This was a treat. Albertans were greeted by the school’s jazz band renditions of Swing, Swing and O Canada, followed by a calligraphy lesson and a traditional Japanese tea ceremony. Many photos were taken of Japanese students and Alberta athletes and the event was detailed in the local newspaper the next day.
The Kushiro banquet that evening saw Alberta delegation members receive gifts of traditional Japanese silk sumo shorts, before a social evening with Japanese athletes. The highlight for the Hokkaido skaters, we are told, was learning from young Canadians the physical reaction game Ninja. Alberta leaders hosted an evening featuring fine Canadian whiskey, red wine and ice wine.
Canadian Loonie in the Kushiro Oval ice.
We began Tuesday morning by continuing the Canadian tradition of embedding a loonie in the ice, just past the 1000m finish. A 500 yen coin was gleefully placed next to the loonie by Mr. Nakajima, an elder statesman of Hokkaido speed skating who has become a good friend of Alberta skaters. Alberta skaters competed in outdoor time trials on Tuesday morning, and then presented the Kushiro oval with an Alberta flag signed by every member of the Alberta delegation. The group then traveled by bus across Hokkaido to Sapporo, where this wonderful visit continues. Many members of the team expressed a sincere wish to return to Kushiro in the future.
The Alberta Amateur Speed Skating Association’s (AASSA) Skater Development Committee (SDC) is planning to hold a Silent Auction Fundraiser at the RU Fast competition in Calgary on March 2-4, 2012. We are asking all Alberta skaters and clubs throughout the province to support this initiative. Over the last three years the Silent Auction has raised over $16,000!
Why: The SDC needs additional funding in order to run our programs and competitions that will assist in developing our club coaches and athletes. The monies raised will benefit all Alberta skaters and coaches as well as competitions they are involved in. In the past the money has been used to support skaters to Age Class ST & LT competitions, i.e. travel support, bus rental to Regina Canadian Championship, and AASSA camps.
What: We are asking for any new donated items such as: gift certificates, tickets to events, gift baskets, electronics, household goods, speed skating equipment or clothing, sports items, etc.
Who: We are asking all clubs to support this fundraising initiative.
When: The auction will take place on Friday, March 2nd starting at noon and will continue until Saturday, March 3rd at 4:00 p.m. Bids will close at that time and items will be given out to the highest bidder.
Where: The auction will take place in the Room 54 at Olympic Oval during the RU Fast short track meet. It would be appreciated if items could be dropped off at the CSSA office before Friday, March 2nd. If not, items should be dropped off in Room 54 before noon on Friday. Please e-mail Shawna with the donor’s name and a description of the item(s) so we can make bid sheets up ahead of time.
Head Organizers:
Natalia Iourieva, CSSA: vlas2005@mail.com and please copy: calspeed@ucalgary.ca
Shawna Pearman, AASSA: spearman@telusplanet.net home: 403-783-4206 cell: 403-704-3314
Volunteers Required
Volunteers are required for the Alberta Winter Games which are being held in Spruce Grove from Thursday, February 9 – Sunday, February 12. Assistance is required for all officials positions. Registration can be done easily online, but it is a two-step process.
First click on the following site to chose your speed skating position; http://www.volunteersignup.org/8BCD8 Then follow this link http://www.2012awg.ca/volunteers/current-opportunities/21 to register as a volunteer for the host society. You must indicate whether you are over/under the age of 18 before the “Register” button appears so that you can complete the form.
Logo, pictures and text copyright of the Alberta Amateur Speed Skating Association 2010-2011. All rights reserved.
