Media Room
Press ReleasesJune 07, 2006
Canada And China Come Together For Pacific World Cup
Divided by the Pacific Ocean, inspired by the pursuit of athletic excellence, and joined in the spirit of international friendship and cooperation - the national track and field teams of the People's Republic of China and Canada were celebrated and introduced Wednesday at an international news conference at Vancouver's Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden.
The event began the final countdown to Thursday's Vancouver Sun Harry Jerome International Track Classic at Burnaby's Swangard Stadium, where Canada and China will compete for the Pacific World Cup in an international dual track and field meet. The event marks the first time Canada has competed in an official international dual meet since 1988, and serves as an important competitive opportunity for both teams as Beijing prepares to play host to the 2006 world junior track and field championships in August, and the 2008 Olympic Summer Games.
Her Honour, the Honourable Iona Campagnolo, Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia, welcomed the Canadian and Chinese contingents, led respectively by athlete team captains Stephanie McCann and Achraf Tadili, and Huang Xiaoxiao and Li Rongxiang.
"The Pacific World Cup is a fantastic way to give our national team athletes the opportunity to compete against world-class competition in Canada," remarked McCann, the 2006 Commonwealth Games bronze medallist who will compete against Asian record holder Gao Shuying in the women's pole vault..
"This is one of the few chances for the Canadian public to see their top athletes compete at home against other world-class athletes from another country. In the past, I have had to travel throughout the United States and overseas to compete against some of the top international pole vaulters. I am looking forward to the opportunity to compete against China in front of my home crowd."
The 2005 Jerome meet featured a small Canada-China dual meet within an international meet, the result of a bilateral agreement forged earlier by the Canadian Olympic Committee and the Chinese Olympic Committee at a special ceremony in Beijing. The agreement commits to providing Canadian athletes with early access to training and acclimatization sites prior to the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. In turn, Chinese athletes will be offered reciprocal training opportunities in Canada leading up to the 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver.
The success of the small dual meet format in 2005 sparked interest on both sides of the Pacific Ocean to have an expanded dual track and field meet in 2006. As a result, all events on the June 8 Jerome meet card are slated as dual meet events and both China and Canada have sent sizeable teams of athletes to compete. Teams representing British Columbia and Alberta are also competing in a provincial dual meet being held in tandem with the Pacific World Cup competition.
"We are very happy to be a part of this event and it fits in to the longer-range plan of preparing our Canadian track and field athletes to compete at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing," said Martin Goulet, head coach of Canada's Pacific World Cup team to the 23rd annual Harry Jerome meet. "And I am pleased to see the Chinese sending a very good team. This will be a very good competition."
Goulet also noted discussions are underway to perhaps facilitate Canada sending a track and field team to compete in China in 2007 as a preparation exercise to the 2008 Games in Beijing. Goulet explained that few current Canadian track and field team members have competed in Asia, let alone in China, and the experience would be invaluable to help them become familiar and comfortable with Chinese culture and surroundings prior to the demands of competing in an Olympic Games.
"This would be the next step, for us to go to China," he said. "Of course, for that to happen there needs to be a lot of discussion and details worked out. But that experience would help our athletes better prepare for the Games in 2008."
McCann and her teammates hope those discussions, and details, are worked out.
"Having made this connection with China, I also hope we are able to send a team overseas to compete against them on their home turf, in order to better prepare our team for the Olympics in China two years down the road," she said.
The 2006 Vancouver Sun Harry Jerome International Track Classic, featuring the Pacific World Cup, goes June 8, 7 p.m., at Burnaby's Swangard Stadium.
Media Centre contact numbers during the meet:
604-961-1177
778-838-6860
604-970-9113
604-817-6658
For media inquiries contact:
Diane Clement
(604) 261-6220 / dclement00@hotmail.com
For athlete information contact:
Marek Jedrzejek
(604) 822-6259 / marekj@interchange.ubc.ca
or
Doug Clement
dclement00@hotmail.com
