Hello from Halifax!

Investing in the Pursuit of Excellence
by Pat Lechelt, Chef de Mission, Team Alberta
It was a remarkable opening week of competition at the 2011 Canada Winter Games in Halifax – Team Alberta racked up 39 medals, with 11 of them earned on the second day!

I am very proud of our athletes, and proud that the Government of Alberta has supported them by investing in international standard facilities at the Canmore Nordic Centre and Canada Olympic Park.

The investment in these Olympic legacy venues has paid dividends for Team Alberta’s young biathletes who swept the podium in all of the individual men’s races. Leading the charge was our flag bearer Scott Gow, taking home gold in all four of his races. In all, Alberta’s biathletes took the podium 11 times.

Week one success spread beyond the biathlon range. Speed skaters sprinted to 10 medals around the outdoor Oval,and our freestyle skiers showed great form with four podium finishes. Undefeated throughout the round-robin, ringette takes home silver, and women’s curling throws for gold tonight against BC. Alberta’s hockey men kept their medal streak alive as the only team to have medaled in six consecutive editions of the Games after a bronze medal win over BC.

Stay tuned for more great performances in week 2 for Team Alberta!

Get connected with Team Alberta at the 2011 Canada Winter Games in Halifax on Facebook . The Facebook page highlights athlete performances, photos, quotes, and provides information on Team Alberta’s progress in its quest for the podium.

Check out SIRC's Canada Games webpage for more information!