Over the weekend, aspiring athletes ages 14-25 had the opportunity to showcase their athletic prowess in front of Olympic talent scouts at UBCO gymnasium in Kelowna. The RBC Training Ground program is aiming to find potential candidates for Canada’s Olympic team with a series of physical tests such as sprints, strength and endurance drills.
This event has seen immense success since its launch; it has funded seven Olympic medalists and put hundreds more into Canada’s Olympic spotlight. While these accomplishments are remarkable, it’s worth noting that some of Canada’s great Olympians have already come from British Columbia’s Okanagan Valley. Examples include Freestyle skier and gold medalist Kelsey Serwa, Skeleton gold medalist Justin Kripps and Ice Dancers Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir who picked up ice skating gold medals at both the 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea and earlier at the 2010 Games in Vancouver.
This goes to show just how much homegrown talent the Okanagan Valley has produced, and hopefully this special recruiting event will discover even more future stars to add to Canada’s current roster of amazing athletes who are making history on the world stage.
