Yellowknife, NWT – Some of the territory’s top young speed skaters have been learning how to eat like a pro.
Coach Shane Clark took a team of teenage short track skaters from the territory to meet Cristina Sutter, a sport dietitian based in British Columbia, who works with Vancouver Canucks hockey players as well as Olympic and Paralympic athletes.
The message he wanted to get across? Even in the Northwest Territories, it’s still possible to replicate the diet of top athletes farther south.
“It can be very difficult [in the NWT] and in fact that’s the highlight of the presentation – dealing with the accessibility and affordability of fruit and vegetables in the North,” Clark told Moose FM.
“The message for the skaters is to be able to know what they can do to optimize their health in sport and in life, and how important balanced meal planning is for a high-performance athlete. It’s crucial in taking that next step in performance.
“Cristina is great to talk to. We wanted to start with ‘shock and awe’, then work to see how the athletes can have better nutrition.”
The lesson from Sutter forms part of a weekend trip to race in BC.
Skaters from the NWT are taking part in a tournament at the Richmond Olympic Oval – one of the venues used for the Vancouver 2010 Games – this weekend.
The event marks one of the last opportunities to earn a place at the forthcoming Canada Winter Games, to be held in Prince George this coming February.
“They’ll be skating with all the other top western-Canadian short-track skaters,” said Clark.
“For us, it’s a final test in qualifying for the Canada Winter Games – both getting the qualifying times, then deciding who will be the final skaters on the team going to Prince George.”
Athletes racing in Richmond
From Yellowknife: Kristin Chapman, Grace Clark, Lauren Eggenberger (pictured above right), Ali Fleming, Camille Rourke.
From Fort Simpson: Madison Piling.
From Inuvik: Jackson Christie, Alex Robertson.
CJCD Moose FM News
