July 31/17 15:55 pm - RBC Training Ground Seeks Podium Potential Athletes in Ontario

Posted by Editor on 07/31/17
 

This Fall, four RBC Training Ground Local Qualifiers are set to take place across Ontario, culminating with a Regional Final in Toronto this October in the hopes of finding new Olympic talent.

Canadian Sport Institute Ontario (CSIO) is excited to act as delivery partner for all Ontario-based RBC Training Ground events.

"The CSIO is proud to help facilitate the Ontario portion of the RBC Training Ground program, which is a premier program in talent identification and talent transfer," said Tommy Wharton, Director, High Performance Sport at CSIO. "There is a wealth of talented athletes with high potential in Ontario who may not be currently embedded in national high performance pathway programs. Our goal is to use our technical sport expertise to help find these athletes, and hopefully see them represent Canada on the international stage in the future. RBC Training Ground can truly be the start of this Olympic journey for these identified athletes."

A unique partnership between the Canadian Olympic Committee, RBC and CBC Sports, RBC Training Ground is designed to help National Sport Organizations (NSOs) uncover athletes with Olympic podium potential, in sports they may not have considered. Athletes between the ages of 14 and 25 will execute a series of workouts measuring speed, power, strength, and endurance in front of coaches and officials from sport organizations including Cycling Canada, Rugby Canada, Athletics Canada, Canoe Kayak Canada, Rowing Canada, Bobsleigh Skeleton Canada, Alpine Canada, Judo Canada, Triathlon Canada and Water Polo Canada. Results are measured against specific performance benchmarks to determine an athlete's capacity for sport at its highest level.

The Ontario qualifiers will be held in August and September at the Goldring Centre for High Performance Sport (Toronto), Mattamy National Cycling Centre (Milton), Brock University (St. Catharines) and Queen's University (Kingston).

The 100 top performers from the local qualifiers will be invited to the RBC Training Ground Regional Final at Toronto Pan Am Sports Centre (TPASC), home of CSIO's world-class facility on October 14, 2017. The Regional Final will see the best of the best compete with hopes of receiving financial support towards their training and competition programs. The winner of the Ontario Regional Final will also be awarded a trip to the 2018 PyeongChang Olympic Games.

In 2017, RBC Training Ground has already tested more than 1,400 athletes from British Columbia, Alberta, Quebec and Atlantic Canada. Across the four regional final events held thus far, more than 50 per cent of athletes met the testing benchmarks set by NSOs and have been identified for sport-specific testing. Up to 50 athletes will be selected to receive funding support from RBC and the Canadian Olympic Foundation to continue their training and quest to represent Canada internationally.

Registration for the local qualifiers in Ontario can be completed at www.rbctrainingground.com.

RBC Training Ground Local Qualifiers in Ontario:

• Toronto at Goldring Centre for High Performance Sport (UofT) - Saturday, August 26th
• Milton at Mattamy National Cycling Centre - Saturday, September 9th
• St. Catharines at Brock University - Saturday, September 16th
• Kingston at Queen's University - Saturday, September 30th

RBC Training Ground Regional Final
• Toronto at Toronto Pan Am Sports Centre - Saturday, October 14th