Four skaters and two coaches from the Calgary Artistic Roller Sports Club attended the Northwest Regional Championships in Portland, Oregon from June 19-21. The skaters placed First in seven events and received a total of 15 placements overall.
They all have qualified to skate in the U.S. National Championships in Lincoln, Nebraska from July 25-31, 2010.
The following is a list of placements at the Regional event. Congratulations skaters and good luck at the U.S. National Championships!
Calgary’s Sarah Hopkins & Ottawa’s Stephane Tremblay won the Canadian Championship Marathon on Wednesday in Calgary.
In the women’s race, it was Sarah Hopkins who managed to claim her first Canadian marathon title, finishing ahead of Mississauga’s Morgane Echardour. Calgary’s Leah Kaluta placed 3rd.
Ottawa’s Stephane Tremblay broke away early on in the men’s race and skated a strong race, winning by a margin of about 1 1/2 minutes ahead of Calgary’s Alex D’mello. USA’s Josh Wood- World Championships medalist, placed 3rd.
The 42km lead pack- photo from SpeedSkateWorld.com
Click here for Ana Garrido’s pictures featuring skaters from Calgary preparing for this weekend’s RSC Canadian Speed Championships.
Photo from Ana Garrido
The last time Calgary hosted the national competition was in 1997. Tyler Congdon, head coach of Calgary’s inline club and vice-president of speedskating for Roller Sports Canada, says finalists from July’s event will head to the world championships in Colombia in October.
Speed competitions were first held in Canada in the 1970s on roller skates. Even with the switch to inline skates enabling sprinters to reach speeds upwards of 50 kilometres per hour, Canadians are small players on the global racing scene.
Read more here: Calgary hosting inline championships
Photo from Grant Black, Calgary Herald, Calgary Herald
A group of skaters from Montreal & Toronto raced in this past weekend’s Eastern Seaboard Series in Trexlertown.
Herb Gayle won the Pro Masters & Veterans race while Stephan Charron placed 4th in the race, good enough for 3rd in the Pro Masters category.
Heb Gayle (4th in green) & Stephane Charron (6th in green) race in the Pro Masters & Veterans category- photo from Peter Doucet/ SpeedSkateWorld
Brigitte Beaudy won the Pro Master women’s race.
Peter Doucet topped the Pro Senior men’s race, beating out top US skaters on his way to the top of the podium. Doucet was involved in a number of breakaways.
In the Pro Senior women’s race, Morgane Echardour came about 1/2 a skate shy of stepping on the 3rd step of the podium. Echardour drove a hard pace for the women, causing many skaters to drop out of the lead group. However, Echardour came short in the sprint, settling for 4th place.
Canadian skaters together after the race- photo from SpeedSkateWorld
Race conditions were excellent for the Thunder Bay Half Marathon this morning. The 7:00 am gun was even more challenging for the top 3 finishers. All had body-clocks reading one hour earlier, due to the time change. The course is rolling-hills with a beautiful Lake Superior view, to make up for the rude awakening.
Read more here: Race Report: Thunder Bay Half Marathon
“I’ve been a fan of inline skating for over fifteen years,” explained the spokesperson, Olivier Jean. “Inline skating is way more than a hobby, it’s also a training option that helped us capture the gold at the Vancouver Olympics. I’m really proud to be spokesperson for this unique event held in Canada. I’d like to invite everyone to live a memorable experience by taking on the challenge of the 24hr Inline Montreal!”
Read more here: Olivier Jean, spokesperson for the 24hr Inline Montreal
For three short years in the 1880s, Moncton was home to one of the finest roller skating rinks in New England and eastern Canada.
The Victoria Block, circa.1921, at the corner of Robinson and Main Streets, of which the Victoria Roller Rink was once a part.
Built at the corner of Robinson and Main Streets on land purchased from W.J. Robinson, the Victoria Roller Rink held its grand opening on October 14, 1884.
Read more here: Roller skating craze briefly struck Moncton in the 1880s
‘The Victoria Block, circa.1921, at the corner of Robinson and Main Streets, of which the Victoria Roller Rink was once a part.‘- photo from here
Since March 2009, Montreal’s indoor facility, Le Taz, has catered to wheeled sports including street skating, speed skating, skateboarding, and BMX riding.
Le Taz was featuring on France’s RollerEnLigne: SPOT : LE TAZ DE MONTREAL (CANADA)
The MS Run & Roll Half Marathon is set for this Sunday in Thunder Bay.
Roller Sports Canada 