In just days, Canadian athletes will proudly march into the legendary Marcana Stadium for the opening ceremonies of the 2016 Olympic Summer Games.
Canada is sending a total contingent of 313 athletes from 37 sports, along with over 200 coaches and support staff.
Alberta is well represented this year, with over 30 athletes calling the province home competing in Rio. For Albertans eager to watch and support athletes from the province, this is your guide to Rio 2016.
BY THE NUMBERS:
Born in Alberta: 31
From Edmonton: 7
From Calgary: 16
From Lethbridge: 3
Other: 5 (Medicine Hat, Olds, Red Deer, Sherwood Park, Stony Plain)
From elsewhere but trained in Calgary: 3
ATHLETICS:
Maria Bernard
Hometown: Calgary, Alta.
Age: 23
Event: 3,000m Steeplechase
Bernard is a born and raised Calgarian, graduating from Bishop O’Byrne High School. At just 23 years of age she will make her Olympic debut. While competing at the University of British Columbia, Bernard won the 3,000m steeplechase.
Event Date: Women’s round 1 – Aug. 13 (6:30 a.m. MST), Women’s final – Aug. 15 (6:30 a.m. MST)
Watch below: Local track and field athletes Jessica O’Connell and Maria Bernard join Global Calgary along with Canadian Athletics Coach Mike Van Tighem with details on how they are preparing for the Rio Olympics.
Mathieu Bilodeau
Hometown: Calgary, Alta.
Age: 32
Event: 50km Race Walk
Originally from Quebec City, Bilodeau actually competed internationally in triathlon before making the switch to race walking in March of 2014. Now, two years later the 32-year-old Bilodeau finds himself in the Olympics Games.
Event Date: Aug. 19 (5 a.m. MST)
Kendra Clarke
Hometown: Edmonton, Alta.
Age: 19
Event: 400m, 4 X 400m Relay
At just 19 years of age, Clarke will make her Olympic debut after a third place finish in the 2016 Canadian Championships. Her personal best time of 52.19 met the Olympic standard by one-hundredth of a second.
Event Date: Women’s 400m: round 1 – Aug. 13, Women’s 400m: semi-finals – Aug. 14, Women’s 400m: final – Aug. 15, Women’s 4 x 400 Relay: round 1 – Aug. 19 (5:10 p.m. MST), Women’s 4 x 400 Relay: final – Aug. 20 (5:10 p.m. MST).
Watch below: Edmonton’s Angela Whyte and Kendra Clarke talk about being named to the Canadian 2016 Olympic team
Akeem Haynes
Hometown: Calgary, Alta.
Age: 24
Event: 100m, 4 x 100m Relay
Haynes holds the title of Calgary’s fastest sprinter. Born in Jamaica, Haynes moved with his family to Yellowknife, NWT at the age of seven, before eventually landing in Calgary at the age of 10. The Crescent Heights High School product qualified for the 2012 Olympics in London, however did not race.
Event Date: Men’s 100m: preliminary round – Aug. 13, Men’s 100m: semi-finals & final – Aug. 14, Men’s 4 x 100m relay: round 1 – Aug. 18, Men’s 4 x 100m relay: final – Aug. 19
Carline Muir
Hometown: Edmonton, Alta.
Age: 28
Event: 400m, 4 x 400m Relay
Born in Jamaica, Muir moved to Canada when she was a child. She made her Olympic debut in 2008 as the youngest member of the Canadian track and field team. Despite missing the 2012 Games due to injury, Muir returns to the international spotlight in Rio, as one of the country’s top 400m sprinters.
Event Date: Women’s 400m: round 1 – Aug. 13, Women’s 400m: semi-finals – Aug. 14, Women’s 400m: final – Aug. 15, Women’s 4 x 400 Relay: round 1 – Aug. 19 (5:10 p.m. MST), Women’s 4 x 400 Relay: final – Aug. 20 (5:10 p.m. MST)
Jessica O’Connell
Hometown: Calgary, Alta.
Age: 27
Event: 5,000m
A born and raised Calgarian, O’Connell graduated from Western Canada High School, before attending the University of Calgary and running with Dinos Athletics. She’s the 2014 Canadian champion, boasts the fourth fastest 5,000m time in Canadian history and enters Rio 2016 as medal threat.
Event Date: Women’s 5,000m: round 1 – Aug. 16, Women’s 5,000m: final – Aug. 19
Heather Steacy
Hometown: Lethbridge, Alta.
Age: 27
Event: Hammer Throw
Steacy comes from a hammer throwing family. Both her brothers, Sean and Jim competed internationally for Canada. Steacy made her Olympic debut in 2012, joining her older brother Jim, who is a two-time Olympian. She finished 17th in London.
Event Date: Women’s Hammer Throw: qualifying – Aug. 12, Women’s Hammer Throw: final – Aug. 15
Sage Watson
Hometown: Medicine Hat, Alta.
Age: 22 Event: 400m Hurdles, 4 x 400m Relay
Watson is making her Olympic debut, after representing Canada at the Pan Am Games in Toronto, winning a bronze medal with the 4 x 400 relay team. The Medicine Hat native also won three medals, including a gold in the 400m hurdles at the Junior Pan American Championships in 2013.
Event Dates: Women’s 400m Hurdles: round 1 – Aug. 15, Women’s 400m Hurdles: semi-finals – Aug. 16, Women’s 400m Hurdles: final – Aug. 18, Women’s 4 x 400 Relay: round 1 – Aug. 19 (5:10 p.m. MST), Women’s 4 x 400 Relay: final – Aug. 20 (5:10 p.m. MST)
Angela Whyte
Hometown: Edmonton, Alta.
Age: 36
Event: 100m Hurdles
A veteran of the Canadian track and field team, Whyte will be making her third Olympic appearance (2004 Athens, 2008 Beijing). Her best finish, sixth place, was the top Canadian result in Athens 2004.
Event Date: Women’s 100m Hurdles: round 1 – Aug. 16, Women’s 100m Hurdles: semi-finals & final – Aug. 17
BADMINTON:
Martin Giuffre
Hometown: Calgary, Alta.
Age: 25
Event: Men’s Singles
The oldest of five kids, Giuffre has been playing badminton at the Glencoe Club in Calgary since he was four-years-old. Giuffre attended Western University in London, Ont. where he dominated the university level winning five OUA singles titles as well as three college-university national singles titles. He is making his Olympic debut.
Event Date: Men’s singles: group play and playoffs – Aug. 11 to 19. Gold & bronze medal matches – Aug. 20 (5:30 a.m. MST)
Watch below: Training for as much as eight hours a day is really paying off for Calgary badminton player Martin Giuffre. As Gil Tucker shows us, he’ll soon be hitting the court at the Summer Olympics.
BASKETBALL:
Katherine & Michelle Plouffe
Hometown: Edmonton, Alta.
Age: 23
Event: Women’s basketball team
The Plouffe sisters are twins and one of three sets of siblings competing for Canada in Rio. They both play professionally in France. They made their Olympic debut in London 2012, where Canada finished just off the podium in eighth. They were both part of the squad that won gold at the Pan American Games in Toronto.
Event Date: Women’s basketball: preliminary round – Aug. 6 – Aug. 14, Quarter-Finals – Aug. 16, Semi-Finals – Aug. 18. Bronze & Gold medal matches – Aug. 20.
Look back to July 2015: Katherine & Michelle Plouffe reflect on their Pan Am gold
READ MORE: Edmonton’s Plouffe sisters to live dream at Rio Olympics
CYCLING:
Allison Beveridge
Hometown: Calgary, Alta.
Age: 23
Event: Women’s Track Cycling
Beveridge started cycling at the age of 14. Now, nine years later, she will make her Olympic debut. The 23-year-old burst onto the international scene at the 2015 Pan Am Games winning a gold and bronze medal. She’s also medalled in each of the last three UCI World Championships (track). She’s part of a team pursuit with great medal potential in Rio.
Event Dates: Women’s Track Cycling – Aug. 11 – 16.
Look back to June 2015: Calgarian Allison Beveridge trains for Pan Am Games
Kate O’Brien
Hometown: Calgary, Alta.
Age: 28
Event: Women’s Track Cycling
O’Brien is a newcomer to track cycling. The Calgarian competed on the National Bobsleigh team, narrowly missing the 2014 Olympics in Sochi as a brakeman. She won a pair of medals at the Pan Am Games, including gold in team sprint. This will be her Olympic debut.
Event Dates: Women’s Track Cycling – Aug. 11 – 16.
Monique Sullivan
Hometown: Calgary, Alta.
Age: 27
Event: Women’s Track Cycling
Sullivan’s cycling career began on the cement track at the Glenmore Veladrome at the age of 12 and she has never looked back. Sullivan made her Olympic debut in London 2012, but announced her arrival on the international scene at the Toronto Pan Am games winning three gold medals. Sullivan will be one to watch in Rio.
Event Dates: Women’s Track Cycling – Aug. 11 – 16.
Tara Whitten
Hometown: Calgary, Alta.
Age: 36
Event: Women’s Road Cycling
Whitten is one of the veterans of the Canadian cycling team. She started her journey into sport in cross country skiing, competing on the national team, but made the switch to cycling after missing out on the 2006 Olympic team. Whitten lived her Olympic dream in 2012, not only going to her first Games, but winning bronze medal in team pursuit.
Event Date: Women’s Road Race Final – Aug. 7 (9:15 a.m. MST), Individual time trial – Aug. 10 (5:30 a.m. MST)
GYMNASTICS:
Brittany Rogers
Hometown: Vancouver, B.C.
Age: 23
Event: Gymnastics – Artistic
While she was born and raised in British Columbia, Rogers has been fine tuning her skills in Alberta the last few years at the Calgary Gymnastics Centre. This is her second Olympics Games, also competing in London 2012, part of the women’s team that reached the final for the first time, matching its best-ever result, finishing fifth.
Event Dates: Women’s Artistic Gymnastics: qualification – Aug. 7, Women’s Team Finals – Aug. 9, Women’s apparatus finals – Aug. 15-16.
EQUESTRIAN:
No members of the Equestrian Jumping team are actually from Calgary, but many horse jumping fans treat them as one of their own because of how much time they spend just outside the city competing at the world famous Spruce Meadows.
The team is made up of Yann Candele (Horse: Showgirl, First Choice 15), Tiffany Foster (Horse: Tripple X III, Victor), Eric Lamaze (Horse: Fine Lady 5, Check Picobello Z) and Amy Millar (Horse: Heros)
Event Dates: Jumping individual Qualification – Aug. 14 (7:00 a.m. MST), Individual Final – Aug. 19 (7:00 a.m. MST) Jumping Team Qualification – Aug. 16 (7:00 a.m. MST), Team Final – Aug. 17 (7:00 a.m. MST)
Kara Chad (Alternate)
Hometown: Calgary, Alta.
Age: 20
Event: Equestrian – Jumping
Chad is born and raised in Calgary. The 20-year-old practically grew up on the grounds at Spruce Meadows, learning from the best. Chad and her horse Bellinda will be ready to step in, if necessary, as first alternate on the jumping team.
ROWING:
Nicole Hare
Hometown: Calgary, Alta.
Age: 22
Event: Women’s pair (Partner: Ashley Vrielink)
Hare is a product of the Alberta Rowing Association and will make her Olympic debut in Rio. Hare represented the province at the 2013 Canada Summer Games, winning a gold medal in women’s single. Hare now joins an exclusive list of Alberta rowers to go to the Olympics and Paralympic Games. Since 2000, eight different athletes have gone on to represent Canada.
Event Dates: Women’s Pairs: Heats – Aug. 7, Women’s Pairs: semi-finals – Aug. 10, Women’s Pairs: Finals – Aug. 12.
RUGBY SEVENS:
Jen Kish
Hometown: Edmonton, Alta.
Age: 28
Event: Rugby Sevens
The Edmonton product will captain the Canadian team which enters Rio 2016 as medal contenders. Rugby Sevens is making its Olympic debut. Kish, one of the pioneers of the sport in Canada, started her rugby career playing Fifteens, before transitioning to Sevens, where she’s participated in nearly every World Rugby Sevens tournament to date. Kish also captained Canada to a gold medal at the Pan Am Games in Toronto.
Event Dates: Rugby Sevens Pool Round – Aug. 6-7, Quarter-Finals – Aug. 7, Semi-Finals, Bronze & Gold medal matches – Aug. 8.
Watch below: Rugby Canada team captain Jen Kish speaks to Global National’s Vassy Kapelos about her journey to Rio 2016 and the support from Canadians.
Ashley Steacy
Hometown: Lethbridge, Alta.
Age: 29
Event: Rugby Sevens
Growing up in the Southern Alberta rugby community, Steacy began playing at the age of 10. Steacy was a three-time Canadian Interuniversity Sport (CIS) champion and two-time CIS Player of the Year. Her husband, Sean Staecy, is the brother of fellow Olympians James and Heather Steacy. Ashley was also a member of the gold medal winning team at the Pan Am Games.
Event Dates: Rugby Sevens Pool Round – Aug. 6-7, Quarter-Finals – Aug. 7, Semi-Finals, Bronze & Gold medal matches – Aug. 8.
Look back to August 2015: Ashley Steacy really introduced herself to the world as part of the Canada Women’s Rugby Team that captured gold at the 2015 Pan Am Games in Toronto. Paul Kingsmith sat down with the gold medalist to recount the experience.
SHOOTING:
Lynda Kiejko
Hometown: Calgary, Alta.
Age: 35
Event: Women’s 10m air pistol & 25m pistol
You don’t have to look far to see where Kiejko’s shooing background came from. Her father, Bill Hare, competed at three Olympic Games in the sport (Toyko 1964, Mexico City 1968, Munich 1972). Kiejko has dreamed of an Olympic appearance herself since a young age. Keijko was in London 2012, but only as a supporter for her sister, Dorothy Ludwig, who won the Olympic nomination for the lone Canadian spot. Keijko won double gold in Toronto at the Pan Am Games.
Event Dates: Women’s 10m air pistol – Aug. 6 (Qualification: 5:30 a.m. MST, Final: 7:30 a.m. MST) Women’s 25m pistol – Aug. 9 (Qualification: 6:00 a.m. MST, Final: 12:30 p.m. MST)
SOCCER:
Stephanie Labbe
Hometown: Stony Plain, Alta.
Age: 29
Event: Women’s Soccer
A member of the women’s national team since 2002, Labbe will get her first true Olympic experience in Rio. She was an alternate on the 2008 team, and missed the magical run of 2012, where the Canadian women won a bronze medal. With fellow Albertan Erin McLeod injured, Labbe is expected to be shoulder the load as the starting goalkeeper in 2016.
Event Dates: Women’s First Round – Aug. 3 – 9. Quarter-Finals – Aug. 12, Semi-Finals – Aug. 16, and Bronze & Gold Medal matches – Aug. 19.
SWIMMING:
Jason Block
Hometown: Calgary, Alta.
Age: 26
Event: Men’s 4 x 100m medley relay
Block was a dominating force for his hometown University of Calgary Dinos swim team winning 11 CIS gold medals in his career. His university career has now paved the way for his Olympic debut in Rio 2016. The 26-year-old topped the podium at the 2016 Olympic Trials in his specialty race, the breastroke.
Event Dates: 4 x 100m medley: heats – Aug. 12, 4 x 100m Medley: final – Aug. 13.
Yuri Kisil
Hometown: Calgary, Alta.
Age: 20
Event: 50m Freestyle, 100m Freestyle, 4 x 200m Freestyle relay. 4 x 100 Medley Relay.
One of the younger members of the Canadian swim team, Kisil fulfilled a childhood dream by securing his spot at the Summer Olympics. He won a medal in every freestyle event at the Canadian Olympic trials, setting personal best times in the process. The Calgary native is attending university at UBC in Vancouver, B.C.
Event Dates: Men’s 100m Freestyle – Aug. 9-10, Men’s 50m Freestyle – Aug. 11-12. Men’s 4 x 100m Freestyle relay – Aug. 7 Men’s 4 x 100m Medley: heats – Aug. 12, Men’s 4 x 100m Medley: final – Aug. 13.
Watch below: Canadian swimmers Yuri Kisil, Martha McCabe, Erika Sektenreich-Hodgson tell Global News how the national team is looking heading into the 2016 Summer Olympic Games. (May 26, 2016)
Rachel Nicol
Hometown: Lethbridge, Alta.
Age: 23
Event: 100m Breaststroke
A graduate of the Lethbridge Amateur Swim Club, Nicol will make her Olympic debut in Rio. Nicol solidified her spot in the games by winning silver in the 2016 Olympic trial in Toronto. Nicol has dual citizenship with the United Kingdom thanks to her Scottish father, who swam at Queen’s University.
Event Dates: Women’s 100m Breastroke: heats & semi-finals – Aug. 7, Women’s 10mxm Breastroke: Final – Aug. 8.
Look back to July 2015: Swimmer Rachel Nicol won gold at the Youth Olympic Games and earned All-American honours at university.
VOLLEYBALL – BEACH:
Ben Saxton
Hometown: Calgary, Alta.
Age: 27
Event: Men’s Beach Volleyball (Partner: Chaim Schalk)
Saxton comes from a true volleyball family. Both his mom and dad (Mylene and Don) played on the Canadian national indoor volleyball team. Ben will become the second Saxton to represent his country at the Olympics. His dad, Don, was a member of the 1984 Canadian team that finished fourth in Los Angeles Olympic Games. His parents are still heavily involved in the sport. They own the Volleydome in Calgary, where Ben and his three siblings practically grew up.
Event Dates: Men’s Beach Volleyball: Prelims – Aug. 6 to 11, Round of 16 – Aug. 13, Quarter-Finals – Aug. 15. Semi-Finals – Aug. 16. Bronze & Gold medal matches – Aug. 18.
Watch below: A pair of Alberta boys, including Ben Saxton, are closing in on a trip to the 2016 Summer Olympics in Brazil. As Brendan Parker reports, their home is on the sand.
Chaim Schalk
Hometown: Red Deer, Alta.
Age: 30
Event: Men’s Beach Volleyball (Partner: Ben Saxton)
When Schalk started beach volleyball in high school, he convinced his dad to build a sand court in their backyard. He did, and now Chaim has turned it into a career. Schalk and Saxton are the top ranked Canadian men’s team on the FIVB World Tour. They also own Canada’s best-ever result at a World Championship, fifth place in 2013.
Event Dates: Men’s Beach Volleyball: Prelims – Aug. 6 to 11, Round of 16 – Aug. 13, Quarter-Finals – Aug. 15. Semi-Finals – Aug. 16. Bronze & Gold medal matches – Aug. 18.
VOLLEYBALL – INDOOR:
Blair Bann
Hometown: Edmonton, Alta.
Age: 28
Event: Men’s Indoor Volleyball
Bann joined the Canadian National team starting in 2014, for the FIVB World League play. He was part of Canada seventh place finish at the 2015 FIVB World Cup. Now he’s part of the Canadian Men’s team that is back in the Olympic Games for the first time in 24 years.
Event Dates: Men’s Preliminary Round – Aug. 7 to Aug. 15, Quarter-Finals – Aug. 16, Semi-Final – Aug. 19, Bronze & Gold medal matches – Aug. 21.
Jay Blankenau
Hometown: Sherwood Park, Alta.
Age: 26
Event: Men’s Indoor Volleyball
Blankenau played for both the Alberta Golden Bears and Calgary Dinos in his university career. After transferring to the University of Calgary in 2010, the setter went on to lead the Dinos to a CIS National Championship and was named a tournament all-star. Blankenau also plays professionally in the Netherlands when not on the national team.
Event Dates: Men’s Preliminary Round – Aug. 7 to Aug. 15, Quarter-Finals – Aug. 16, Semi-Final – Aug. 19, Bronze & Gold medal matches – Aug. 21.
Rudy Verhoeff
Hometown: Calgary, Alta.
Age: 27
Event: Men’s Indoor Volleyball
After graduating from Calgary Christian School in Calgary, Verhoeff left home for post-secondary schooling at Trinity Western University in Langley. Verhoeff led the Spartans to back-to-back national championships in 2010-11 and 2011-12. He was the CIS Championship MVP in 2011. He’s also been a key member of the senior national team the last few years, helping Canada win a bronze medal at the 2015 Pan Am Games in Toronto.
Event Dates: Men’s Preliminary Round – Aug. 7 to Aug. 15, Quarter-Finals – Aug. 16, Semi-Final – Aug. 19, Bronze & Gold medal matches – Aug. 21.
Graham Vigrass
Hometown: Calgary, Alta.
Age: 27
Event: Men’s Indoor Volleyball
A standout in his university career at the University of Calgary, Vigrass led the Dinos to their first CIS National Championship in 17 years in 2010. He was named CIS Championship MVP. After his university career, Vigrass became a full-time member of the Senior National team in the 2012-13 season. Vigrass is the cousin of fellow Olympian, in beach volleyball, Ben Saxton.
Event Dates: Men’s Preliminary Round – Aug. 7 to Aug. 15, Quarter-Finals – Aug. 16, Semi-Final – Aug. 19, Bronze & Gold medal matches – Aug. 21.
WRESTLING:
Jasmine Mian
Hometown: Barrie, Ont.
Age: 26
Event: FW 48 kg Weight Class
While not from Alberta, Mian has called Calgary home leading up to the Rio Olympics. She joined Erica Wiebe and women’s national team head coach Leigh Vierling training out of the University of Calgary. Mian started wrestling at the age of 13 and graduated from Brock University where she won a national championship in 2011. Mian will wrestles in the same weight class as her role model, two-time Olympic medallist Carlo Huynh, who she speaks to often while training in Calgary. Mian hopes to keep the legacy of Canadian women’s wrestling at the Olympics alive. She has medal potential in her weight class.
Event Dates: 48kg: qualification – Aug. 17 (6:00 a.m. MST), 48kg: Finals – Aug. 17 (1:00 p.m. MST)
Watch below: Erica Wiebe and Jasmine Mian are members of the National Women’s Wrestling team headed to Rio for the Summer Olympics. Both women also moved from their hometown Ontario to Calgary to pursue their dream of stepping on the podium 2016 Games. Brendan Parker has more (July 23, 2016).
Danielle Lappage
Hometown: Olds, Alta.
Age: 25
Event: FW 63 kg Weight Class
From a town of less than 9,000 people to the Olympic Games! Lappage started wrestling at the age of 13 because it was offered in middle school. Then in 2010, at the age of 19, she was crowned the world junior champion. Lappage recovered from a torn ACL suffered in November of 2014; in just her second competition post surgery she won a gold medal at an Olympic test event in Rio. She’d love to duplicate that result in mid-August.
Event Dates: 63kg: qualification – Aug. 18 (6:00 a.m. MST), 63kg: Finals – Aug. 18 (1:00 p.m. MST)
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