(May 4, 2005)

This past weekend was an exciting one for 20 young athletes from across Canada.

These athletes were in Ottawa to participate in the 2005 Skate Canada National Youth Camp, which was presented by HomeSense. This was HomeSense’s first year as the presenting sponsor of the youth camp.

Fun on and off the ice

During the two-day event, which took place April 29 to 30 at the University of Ottawa and the Delta Ottawa Hotel, the young skaters had the opportunity to participate in a variety of activities, including on-ice monitoring sessions, an on-ice stroking and turns seminar, an on-ice technical seminar, an off-ice dance seminar, and off-ice presentations on a variety of topics, including the Cumulative Points Calculation (CPC) judging system and sport psychology.

One parent and one coach for each skater, for a total of 60 people, also took part in the weekend’s activities. Specific seminars for coaches included a session on maximizing recovery during competition and a seminar on the CPC judging system. Parents were informed with a session on sport nutrition for young athletes, as well as a session on the CPC judging system.

The Skate Canada National Youth Camp is a concept that was initiated in 1999 under the name Extreme Talent. There have been a number of success stories that have come out of the camp, including Patrick Chan, who was selected to attend the camp in 2001 and went on to win the Canadian Pre-Novice Men’s title in 2003, the Canadian Novice Men’s title in 2004 and the Canadian Junior Men’s title in 2005, and Kyra Moscovitch, who, with her pair partner and brother Dylan Moscovitch, won the Canadian Pre-Novice Pair title in 2004 and the Canadian Novice Pair title in 2005. Kyra Moscovitch attended the Skate Canada National Youth Camp in 2003.

Part of the presenting team at this year’s camp were Skate Canada National Team alumni members Annie Bellemare and Anabelle Langlois. Bellemare, a five-time medallist at the BMO Financial Group Canadian Championships, and Langlois, who, with her former pair partner Patrice Archetto, won five medals at the BMO Financial Group Canadian Championships and placed fifth at the 2003 International Skating Union World Figure Skating Championships, assisted with the on-ice sessions and participated in some of the off-ice presentations.

Other presenters included Louis Stong, Skate Canada Skating Development Director, Marijane Stong and Petra Burka, Skate Canada National Coach Consultants, Igor Tchiniaev, a former member of Russia’s junior and senior national teams as an ice dancer and now a successful coach, Dr. Julia Alleyne, Skate Canada’s Chief Medical Officer and medical director of Sport C.A.R.E. at the Sunnybrook and Women’s College Health Sciences Centre, Yvonne Coutts, Artistic Associate to the Artistic Director at Le Groupe Danse Lab and a part-time faculty member of the Professional Training Program in Modern Dance at The School of Dance, and Kagiso, an Ottawa-born poet and musician, who is currently a dance accompanist for modern and classical ballet dance at various schools within the Ottawa area.

Youth camp participants also had the chance to visit the Skate Canada national office where they had the opportunity to meet national office staff and sit-in on several presentations.

The weekend concluded with a banquet dinner, featuring an inspirational address by Langlois.

Skate Canada congratulates all of this year’s National Youth Camp for their participation in this event.

Participants – 2005 Skate Canada National Youth Camp, presented by HomeSense: