Athlete: Amy Edwards
Age: 16
From: Vernon, BC
Sport: Women’s Curling
Team: Skip: Amy Edwards, Third: Shayna Doll, Second: Kylie Tokairin, Lead: Sydney Hofer, Coach: Merry Miller
Amy has been Curling for 8 years, 4 of which have been competitive, including a Bronze win at the Provincials in Juveniles. She is the Skip of her team for the BC Winter Games, who are made up of players from all over the Okanagan. The team was put together last year and Amy says “We get along really well and it seems perfect!” Amy dreams of one day Curling as a career and would love for it to take her somewhere. She’d like to say thank you to her coach, Mary who she says “has been a huge part in making the team what we are.”
Athlete: Brooke Toop
Age: 14
From: Vernon, BC
Sport: Women’s Hockey
Brooke Toop is 14 years old who was born here in Vernon BC. She is on the U-16 BC Girls Thompson/Okanagan Hockey Team for the BC Winter Games and has been playing hockey since she was 8 years old. Brooke has Type 1 Diabetes but doesn’t let it slow her down. She hopes to be on the Woman’s Canada Team for Olympics one day.
Athlete: Eric Byram
Age: 15
From: Vernon, BC
Sport: Biathlon
Eric got his start with Cross Country Skiing and it wasn’t long before he got interested in Biathlon. He was first in his age group for Biathlon last year in BC and recently won a sprint race at the Western Championships, as well as winning 2 Bronze Medals for Cross Country Skiing at the last BC Winter Games! Eric hopes to take Biathlon as far as he can and sees Olympic Rings in his dreams! He says “It’s great to be involved in the BC Winter Games because it’s like being a part of an exclusive group.”He’d also like to encourage people to learn about Biathlon, there are lots of kids in Vernon, BC and Canada who are doing this sport, so check it out. Eric would like to thank his coaches Bill Maloney and Rob Swan and also Skeets Morel, Mary Edgar and all the people at Stussi Sport!
Athlete: Connie Kapak
Age: 13
From: Vernon, BC
Sport: Speed Skating
Connie has been Speed Skating for over 9 years! She placed 2nd at Canada West last year. She also came in 1st at the Provincial Championships for Short Track and placed 4th for Long Track. Connie was honored to be asked to carry the Torch for the BC Winter Games this year in Vernon in Spirit Square. She someday hopes to go to the Olympics saying “That is my dream!” Connie would like to thank her coaches from both Vernon and Kelowna!
Athlete: Ty Schulte
Age: 15
From: Vernon, BC
Sport: Free Style Skiing
Ty says he got into Free Style Skiing after he say a local team training at Silver Star and he knew he wanted to do it! Ty has been doing the sport for 4 years now. He hopes to take it as far as he can. He says, “It means a lot to compete on a Provincial Level with all the kids in BC.” And is happy his family gets the chance to watch him at home instead of having to travel to see him in action! Ty would like to thank his parents and his sponsors Full Tilt Boots, Giro Helmut’s and Goggles, Go Pro, K2 Skis and Cloud Kicker Apparel and Sun Valley Source for Sports!
Athlete: Eric Embleton
Age: 13
From: Falkland, BC
Sport: Cross Country Skiing
Eric’s Dad introduced him to Cross Country Skiing 5 years ago and he’s been racing ever since! Eric placed first in his category in the Sovereign Lake Loppet and is very committed to the sport, attending 5-7 races through out the season! Eric feels extremely privileged to be a part of the BC Winter Games, as he was chosen as a Wild Card participant! Eric would like to tell anyone interested in Cross Country Skiing to go up the hill and take a lesson! He’d like to thank his Dad and all his coaches for their support!
Athlete: Kayla Wirth
Age: 15
From: Vernon, BC
Sport: Judo
Kayla has been doing Judo for 2 years now and amazingly the BC Winter Games will be her first competition! She saw an ad in the paper for Judo and decided, why not try it and it was a perfect fit! Kayla would love to continue doing Judo for as long as she can and says “It shows my instructors have a lot of faith in me that I’m in the BC Winter Games, it’s exciting and scary!” Kayla would like to thank everyone at the Vernon Judo Club for helping her to come this far!
Athlete: Jaden Jones
Age: 15
From: Coldstream
Sport: Judo
Jaden has been doing Judo with the Vernon Judo Club for 3 years now! He recently won 3rd place at the BC Open! He’s hoping to get the highest rank that he can with Judo and is very happy to be in the BC Winter Games. Jaden says, “It’s the opportunity of a lifetime and this is my last year to do it! It’s great to be representing the Club and my home town.” Jaden would like to thank all the Sensei’s at the Vernon Judo Club!
Athlete: Teigan Moore
Age: 14
From: Vernon, BC
Sport: Ringette
Teigan has been playing Ringette for almost 6 years now! She will be playing in the BC Winter Games with girls from Vernon, Armstrong, Salmon Arm and Kelowna, on the Zone 2 Swag team! Teigan started playing in Kelowna and when she moved to Vernon she continued to play and meet new team mates. Her league team is ever going to Nationals this year. Her goal is to one day play on Team Canada. Teigan says “The BC Winter Games are a once in a lifetime experience and it’s important for me to go as far as I can with Ringette.” Teigan would like to thank her parents for helping her, supporting her and driving her everywhere! And of course, spending all their time and money to help her do her best!
Athlete: Jenna Lazar
Age: 14
From: Vernon, BC
Sport: Hockey
Jenna has been playing hockey for 5 years. She plays Wing position and thinks hockey is a great opportunity for girls sports to get recognized. She would love for hockey to take her somewhere someday because she loves to play it! Jenna says “I’m super happy Vernon is hosting, because it gives the chance for my friends and family to watch me.” She’s looking forward to having tons of fun with her team and would like to say thank you to her family and coaches.
Athlete: Ali Roine
From: Coldstream
Age: 13
Sport: Women’s Hockey
Ali has been playing hockey for 3 years. One of her favorite players is Pavel Datsyuk. She plays Centre for the Salmon Arm Silver Tips! Ali hopes one day to get a scholarship from playing hockey and says “as long as I’m playing hockey, I’m happy and that’s all that matters.” She’s excited for the BC Winter Games and says “We have a strong team and we all get along really well! We’re like a family.” Ali would like to thank her Dad, for being the one to drive her around all the time and always supporting her
Athlete: Hayden Person
Age: 11<
Sport: Free Style Skiing
From: Silver Star, BC
Hayden decided to try Free Style skiing as something new 4 years ago and has been skiing ever since! The BC Winter Games will be his first major competition, but he did win 3rd in the BC Champs in Whistler! He says “I’m really excited for the games and it’s great to represent your sport and have fun.” Hayden practices every weekend and hopes that he can Ski for the rest of his life! He’d like to say thanks to all the coaches at the Silver Star Free Style Ski Club.
Athlete: Alyssa Skaalid
Age: 16
Sport: Speed Skating
From: Enderby, BC
Alyssa started skating when she was 11 years old. She now skates with the Salmon Arm Ice Breakers Speed Skating club but started in Mackenzie before her family moved to Enderby in 2008. She skates 3 times per week and works out twice a week to keep in shape. She also has a summer exercise program and attends a number of summer camps to work on technique and prepare for the next season. She skated for the Thompson - Okanagan zone at the Terrace BCWG in 2010 so this is her second games and also qualified for the Western Canadian Finals last year which will help her prepare as she knows what to expect and what kind of competition she is up against. To qualify for the BCWG was her goal this year and it means a lot to be chosen to skate against the best in the province; all the hard work and dedication has paid off. She acknowledges that her family and coaches have made the difference and wants to make them proud with a good performance.
Athlete: Sydney Castle
Age: 14
Sport: Archery
From: Enderby, BC
Sydney started archery 2 years ago, her good friend Téa Reimer and her parents Kevin and Christine are competitive shooters. They talked her into coming out and trying archery and after attending a few shoots, and doing well she had the confidence to continue. Being able to represent the Vernon Archery Club in the winter games is very exciting for Sydney. She is looking forward to competing and meeting other talented athletes. Sydney says “The winter games are a great way for top talented athletes to compete against each other. Every sport will be full of talent and great to watch.” Sydney is currently involved in many other sports including Basketball, Volleyball, Ringette and Downhill Skiing, and she says “I enjoy every sport that I do and work hard at all of them.” Sydney would like to thank the Vernon Archery Club for letting her use their indoor shooting facility and a big thanks to Kevin and Christine Reimer for taking her under their wing and teaching her the sport of Archery, driving to practices and shoots
Athlete: Brendan Cliff
Age: 15
Sport: Curling
From: Armstrong, BC
This team truly represents curling in the North Okanagan. Skip Brendan Cliff and Third Brendan Chapple are from the Armstrong Curling Club, Second Deven Schmidt and Lead Matthew Young are from the Vernon Curling Club, fifth Derek King is from the Salmon Arm Curling Club and coach Sandy Farynuk is from the Enderby Curling Club. (Missing from the picture is Assistant Coach Tyler Young from the Vernon Curling Club.)
Skip Brendan Cliff got interested in curling when his Grandfather encouraged him and his brother to take up the sport and join the local Junior program in Armstrong. It was great advice and he has been curling for 7 years now. Brendan has been to a Junior Men's Provincial playdown as a fifth in 2010, but is very excited to be skipping his own team in the Juvenile Provincial playdown in the BC Winter Games. All the boys are very proud and excited to be able to represent the Thompson/Okanagan Region at the BC Winter Games. Their ultimate goal is to get the gold medal and be the BC Juvenile team to go to the Optimists Junior Bonspiels in April in Toronto.
The Team would like to thank their parents for their support and all the driving they do, coaches Sandra Farynuk and Tyler Young for all the time they have put into working with the team, Jim Cotter for his advice and help, their sponsors Hytec/Kohler of Armstrong, H&R Block and AMI Clothing of Vernon, Salmon Arm Legion, Enderby and District Credit Union, and the Armstrong, Enderby and Vernon Curling Clubs for all the extra ice time they have given the team to practice to get ready for the games.