CANADA SUMMER GAMES- Jeux du D'ete Canada Games AUGUST 2- AUGUST 17 2013
Sherbrooke, Quebec- we love u- thank u- merci- Canada's finest
http://www.jeuxducanada2013.ca/en/
francis (french and acadian)- english- Canada is bilingual eh :-)
https://cg2013.gems.pro/login.aspx?ReturnURL=%2fParticipant%2fList.aspx&Param=&Gems_ScreenWidth=1024&Gems_ScreenHeight=768&Gems_ScreenAvailWidth=1024&Gems_ScreenAvailHeight=728
nova scotia The flag is similar to the shield. It has the blue cross of St. Andrew and a shield with the royal lion on a gold background. It became the official provincial flag in 1929
----------------
Nova Scotia- Nouvelle-Écosse-Let the Canada Games begin
August 2, 2013 - 11:13pm By BRIAN FREEMAN Sports Reporter
Nova Scotia athletes excited to get competition started in Sherbrooke
PHOTO
Flag-bearer Emily Nickerson leads Team Nova Scotia into the Canada Games opening cermonies at the Universite de Sherbrooke on Friday night. (MEGAM MAHON / Communications Nova Scotia)
Andrea Williams is ready to take her first swing at the Canada Summer Games.
The softball player from the Park Falls area of Pictou County was getting psyched up for competition Friday evening as she and her Team Nova Scotia mates prepared for the opening ceremonies in Sherbrooke, Que.
"It’s finally hitting me now," the 19-year-old said in a telephone interview as she waited for the evening formalities to begin at Universite de Sherbrooke.
BLOG REPLAY: Canada Games opening ceremonies
"I was excited the whole time and now I’m actually realizing we’re here and I’m really excited to play and see all the other Nova Scotia athletes. It’s just a very exciting atmosphere.
"Everyone’s getting rowdy and everyone’s cheering and it’s quite exciting. It’s just pumping everyone up."
Williams and her teammates on the women’s softball squad will be among the first Nova Scotians to compete at the 2013 Games. They’re scheduled to play twice today, against Alberta and Newfoundland and Labrador.
Swimmer Mohamed Eldah of Dartmouth was also getting revved up for the Games to begin.
The 19-year-old, who is originally from Egypt, also represented Nova Scotia at the 2009 Summer Games in Prince Edward Island. He said he’s determined to take in more of the experience this time around.
"Comparing it to the last one, I’m much more excited, I’m much more ready to do my best," he said before the opening ceremonies. "I’m just really excited to start racing."
Eldah is competing individually in butterfly, backstroke and freestyle events. He’ll see his first action in the pool Sunday in the 4x200 freestyle relay before beginning his solo swims Monday.
After arriving Thursday night and practising Friday, he said he and his roughly 325 Bluenose teammates were anxious to follow soccer player Emily Nickerson, Nova Scotia’s Week 1 flag-bearer, into the opening Friday night.
"We’ve just started to get things going and getting people really excited for what’s gonna come in the next two weeks."
About 4,200 athletes from across the country are participating in 20 sports at 18 venues over the span of the Games.
Competition gets underway today, with Week 1 sports continuing through to Aug. 9.
After a two-day weekend break, the Games resume Aug. 12 and carry on until Aug. 17.
Other sports kicking off the Games today are baseball, mountain biking, women’s soccer, tennis, sailing and volleyball.
Nova Scotians won a provincial record 52 medals at the 2009 Games in P.E.I., topping their previous best of 47 in London, Ont., eight years earlier.
http://thechronicleherald.ca/sports/1145833-let-the-canada-games-begin
-------------------
Stephen Harper speaks at Canada Games opening
Event taking place in Sherbrooke, Que.
The Canadian Press
Posted: Aug 2, 2013 1:07 PM ET
000000 Prime Minister Stephen Harper speaks at Opening of Canada Summer Games- Aug 2- 17 - Sherbrooke Quebec
The 2013 Canada Summer Games got off to a flying start at its opening ceremonies.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper and a host of dignitaries welcomed athletes from across the country on Friday, earning loud cheers, while a group of acrobats earned gasps from the crowd during their daring act.
Harper was the first public official to address the crowd of over 5,000 spectators and was the last official to speak before a raucous musical number and fireworks finished the festivities.
"Regardless of the sport you play, regardless of the province or territory that you represent, know that in your athletic career, that all Canadians from coast to coast to coast are behind you," said Harper during his opening remarks.
He was more brief in his closing statement.
"I declare the 2013 Canada Games open!" said Harper, straining to be heard over the cheering audience after the official flame of the two-week event was lit.
A two-storey stage made to look like a red-brick building covered in graffiti sat in the middle of the field at the Universitie de Sherbrooke's football stadium. More than 2,100 athletes from every province and territory filed in from two different points, circling the track and sitting in three groups of seats on the grass.
Singers and dancers performed on the centre stage as well as three lower platforms, with each delegation getting its own entrance music, such as a cover of Justin Bieber's "Baby" for Ontario and a live rendition of Joni Mitchell's "Big Yellow Taxi" for Saskatchewan.
Quebec got the loudest ovation, with tennis player Hugo Di Feo carrying the host province's flag, although the small group of athletes from Nunavut — led by wrestler David Haulli — also drew vocal support.
"All the preparation and hard work of so many has certainly culminated into the growing awareness of the Canada Games in the heart of Sherbrooke, the province of Quebec and even across all of Canada," said Tom Quinn, chairman of the Canada Games Council in a news conference before the opening ceremonies. "This is truly a wonderful day in the lives of these young athletes who will be competing and representing their province or territory with the greatest of pride and determination."
After Harper's first speech, as well as statements from several other officials, there were several musical acts including slam poet David Goudreault. The crowd gasped during Goudreault's performance when several dancers fell off the top of the centre structure.
The audience then burst in to applause when the acrobats bounced off trampolines hidden in the stage to return to the top of the building.
A group of dignitaries helped carry the official flag of the Canada Summer Games in to the stadium before a colour guard of four Royal Canadian Mounted Police raised it.
Loud ovation for Lac-Megantic
Colette Roy-Laroche, the mayor of nearby Lac-Megantic, got the loudest ovation of the flag bearers. The town 80 kilometres northeast of Sherbrooke was devastated by an explosive train derailment that claimed the lives of 47 people on July 6.
Other flag bearers included Jean Perrault, the former mayor of Sherbrooke who led the bidding process for the Games, as well as several former Olympians like freestyle skier Jennifer Heil, wheelchair racer Diane Roy, sprinter Bruny Surin and divers Sylvie Bernier, Alexandre Despaties and Annie Pelletier.
"A special welcome to all the athletes who've followed in the footsteps of previous Canadian Games athletes such as Sidney Crosby, Steve Nash, Catriona Le May Doan, Alexandre Despaties, Annie Plletier, Bruny Surin and Jennifer Heil," said Quinn during his remarks at the festivities. " You are here tonight and for the next two weeks representing your families, friends, province or territory and yourself.
"Are you ready to compete?"
There are 4,200 athletes from across Canada competing in 20 different sports over 16 days at the 2013 Games, scattered across 20 venues in Sherbrooke and its surrounding area. The athletes will arrive in two waves, with the first group vacating the athlete's village on Aug. 10, and the second group moving in the next day.
Ontario won the flag at the 2009 Canada Games in Prince Edward Island, winning a total of 202 medals. British Columbia finished with 144, while Quebec had 145. B.C., however, finished second in the medal standings because it earned more points with more gold medals than Quebec: 57 to 42.
Medals unveiled
Earlier, the medals for the Canada Summer Games were unveiled at a small ceremony.
Jennifer Heil, Sylvie Bernier, Pierre Harvey, Annie Pelletier and Diane Roy — all Canada Games alum and former Olympians — were on hand to model the gold, silver and bronze medals.
The medals have a textured, topographical surface that represents the geographical diversity of Canada.
The design includes a red-throated hummingbird on one side of the medal, a bird native to Sherbrooke and its surrounding areas.
The Royal Canadian Mint producued the medals with materials provided by Teck mining, the same firm that supplied the metal for the medals at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.
COMMENT:
Why all this hype about the Olympics? Is CBC completely unaware that the Canada Games started today? How about some coverage of it?!
--------------------
Canada Summer Games–Sherbrooke 2013 set to open!
August 2, 2013
Thousands of participants, volunteers, visitors, and residents will gather together, starting at 7 p.m., for a memorable experience: The opening of the Canada Summer Games–Sherbrooke 2013! "The dream that has inspired and motivated us for many years is now a reality," remarked Monique F. Leroux, President of the Canada Summer Games–Sherbrooke 2013 and Chair of the Board, President and Chief Executive Officer of Desjardins Group. "We are proud and honored to welcome Canada to our region for this great celebration of amateur sport!
Since the initial Games’ bid efforts and the announcement of the host city in 2009, the community has banded together and been deeply involved in helping produce a top-notch Summer Games.
"We are grateful to the 5500 volunteers and our esteemed partners who believed in this project and so ardently supported it. Their collective efforts mean that starting today, we can be part of an event that leaves its mark on the history of the region, Quebec, and Canada."
- Tom Allen, Chair of the Board of Directors and the Executive Committee of the Canada Summer Games–Sherbrooke 2013 -
"All the preparation and hard work of so many has certainly culminated into the growing awareness of the Canada Games in the heart of Sherbrooke, the province of Quebec and even across all of Canada. This is truly a wonderful day in the lives of these young athletes who will be competing and representing their province or territory with the greatest of pride and determination. Congratulations to the Host Society of Sherbrooke for a job well done with all the preparations for these Games."
- Tom Quinn, Chairman of the Canada Games Council -
"Right here, in just a few hours, the best young athletes from every province and territory will reach the highest levels of competition in Canada. Their achievements will be a source of pride and inspiration for all Canadians. Our Government is proud to support this major sport event, which will bring significant economic benefits for the region. I invite Canadians across the country to get in the spirit of the Games and cheer on our athletes in their pursuit of excellence."
- The Honourable Bal Gosal, Minister of State (Sport) -
Some 3400 athletes from 13 provinces and territories will be competing in 20 sport disciplines at the Canada Summer Games–Sherbrooke 2013 from August 2 to 17, 2013. The one-of-a-kind event will bring together 12 000 participants, including 5500 volunteers, and will attract more than 15 000 visitors.
Sherbrooke will be the first city in the province of Quebec to host the Canada Summer Games, which features the future generation of national, international, and Olympic champions. The cities of Magog and Coaticook will also be hosting sport events.
"It’s an honour for Quebec to host this major sport event, which showcases the excellence of our up-and-coming athletes. I would like to extend a warm welcome to the 3400 athletes and chaperones who are here at the Games. May the Games be played in a spirit of pride and achievement."
- Marie Malavoy, Minister of Education, Recreation, and Sports -
"This major Pan-Canadian sport event is an outstanding showcase for Sherbrooke, Coaticook, and Magog. We are proud of our sports facilities which will be enjoyed by Sherbrooke and Eastern Townships residents for many generations to come."
- Bernard Sévigny, Mayor of Sherbrooke and First Vice-President of the Canada Summer Games–Sherbrooke 2013 -
Notable innovations
Perseverance, personal achievement, and pleasure are all values that served as a guideline for the Host Society of the Canada Summer Games–Sherbrooke 2013. This edition of the Games features many innovations and "firsts":
•A major educational project was set up in schools in the area;
•A Torch Relay was run in 30 Quebec cities and towns and a Regional Torch Relay will end at the Opening Ceremony;
•An office of the ombudsman was established for volunteers;
•The Games are sustainable, Fair Trade, and Carbon-Care certified;
•The Closing Ceremony will be free for everyone.
Canada Games flag relay
The official Canada Games flag has been making its way across the country since June 10. The flag has been to each of the former Canada Games host communities before arriving at the Université de Sherbrooke stadium this evening. The flag’s itinerary provides the opportunity to commemorate the role that former host communities played in Canada Games’ history and their legacy. Thousands of former volunteers, employees, partners, and friends took part in this relay and are now eagerly waiting to see the flag raised during the Opening Ceremony.
Attend the events!
Seize the opportunity to see the athletes in action by purchasing tickets online at www.2013canadagames.ca. You can also check the full sport competition and cultural activity schedules on the Web site and through the "jcg2013? mobile app.
http://www.jeuxducanada2013.ca/en/canada-summer-games-sherbrooke-2013-set-to-open/
--------------------------
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.