Best of 2017
2017 was a fantastic year for Manitoba’s top performers.
From sensational performances from our province’s young phenoms to the nearly thirty Manitobans who spent 2017 fighting to represent Canada at the PyeongChang Olympic and Paralympic Games, 2017 was full of exciting moments.
Take a look back at our best moments of 2017:
January 11
Heather McLean claims Canadian titles, sets new personal bests
Manitoban speed skater Heather McLean defended her National titles in both the 500m and 1000m events at the Canadian Single Distance Championships. Heather is a name to watch in Canadian long-track speed skating in the lead up to the 2018 PyeongChang Olympic Games.
Photo by Chung Sung-Jun – ISU/ISU via Getty Images
January 13
Mislawchuk, Givens win Triathlon Canada excellence awards
Triathlete Tyler Mislawchuk and paratriathlete Chantal Givens were awarded for their spectacular performances in 2016. 21-year-old Mislawchuk of Oak Bluff placed 15th at his first Rio Olympic Games, while Givens placed eighth (PT4 division) in the inaugural Paratriathlon event.
Photo by National Post
February 6
Onyshko named one of Gymnastics Canada’s athletes of the year
Rio 2016 Olympian and Brandon Eagles gymnast Isabela Onyshko and Ellie Black were named Gymnastics Canada’s athlete of the year for 2016. Both gymnasts qualified for the All-Around final in Rio de Janeiro, while Bela placed a Canadian-best-ever 10th place on the balance beam.
Photo by Elsa/Getty Images South America
February 27
Wog wins four medals at USports Championships
University of Manitoba Bisons swimmer Kelsey Wog ended her rookie year with an astounding four medals at the 2017 USports Championships in February. 18-year-old Wog picked up one gold, one silver and two bronze in the pool, competing head-to-head against national champions and Olympic athletes.
February 27
CSCM turns 20
On March 27, 2017, CSCM celebrated our 20th anniversary of incorporation. CSCM was created as a legacy of the 1999 Pan American Games in Winnipeg and has been assisting Manitoba’s Olympic and Paralympic athletes on their sport journeys since 1997.
April 12
Kyla Roy signs with Arizona State University
Triathlete Kyla Roy became the first Canadian to sign to a Division I school in April. After collecting two medals at the Canada Games in Winnipeg, Kyla started her first season with Arizona State University’s triathlon team. Roy has already made a name for herself, finishing third at the Women’s Collegiate Triathlon National Championship in November.
May 8
Mislawchuk returns to competition
Following his 15th place finish in Rio, triathlete Tyler Mislawchuk took time off to rest, recover, and rehabilitate an injury suffered pre-Olympic Games. Following a nine-month-long hiatus, Mislawchuk competed for the first time since the 2016 Olympics in Chengdu, China. Mislawchuk is looking to step onto an Olympic podium at the Tokyo 2020 Games.
Photo by Rich Cruse, triathlon.org
May 13
Nadya Crossman Serb’s dream lives on
Over one hundred Manitobans helped canoe-sprinter Nadya Crossman-Serb reach her fundraising goal in May. Meeting her goal gave Nadya the ability to continue chasing her dream: competing at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, the first Games to ever host women’s paddling events.
June 21
CSCM unveils new brand
CSCM unveiled its new brand in June. The creative team presented an abstract and familiar way to represent movement. The silhouette of the running athlete represents all of the steps an athlete takes to make it to an Olympic or Paralympic Games. The sum of their experience is represented in every dot.
May to July 13
Winnipeg bids to host 2021 ISSP World Congress
CSCM’s Adrienne Leslie-Toogood and Luisa Alarcón – along with Leisha Strachan – put together an official bid to host the 2021 ISSP World Congress in Sport Psychology. The trio travelled to Spain in July, where they delivered their bid to the International Society of Sport Psychology bidding committee to shine international spotlight on the city of Winnipeg.
July 19
Emma Gray named Canada Summer Games flag bearer
19-year-old rowing phenom Emma Gray was named Manitoba’s flag bearer for the 2017 Canada Summer Games held in Winnipeg. Gray led Team Manitoba into the Canada Summer Games opening ceremonies on July 28, and went on to claim a gold medal in the Women’s 1x event and bronze medals in the Women’s 2x and 4x events.
Photo by Ruth Bonneville, Winnipeg Free Press
August 4
Tachinski puts on a show
Victoria Tachinski gave the crowd at Investors Group stadium exactly what it wanted as she brought home Manitoba’s first gold of the Canada Games in the Women’s 400m. Tachinski followed the gold by winning silver medals in the Women’s 800m and Women’s 4x400m relay. Tachinski’s Games performance was her last at home in Manitoba before leaving the province in September to begin her career with Pennsylvania State’s Division I track team.
Photo by Boris Minkevich, Winnipeg Free Press
October 23
James Lavallée wins Tom Longboat award, named Future 40 nominee
Kayaker James Lavallée won two bronze medals and one silver at the Canada Games in August. Proudly Métis, James was awarded with the Tom Longboat Award, which recognizes one male and one female Aboriginal athlete each year for their outstanding contributions to sport in Canada. As a result of his fantastic year, CBC Manitoba named James on of their Future 40 nominees.
Photo by Cory Aronec Photography, CSCM
November 9
Serena Buchwald signs with University of Pittsburgh
Revolution diver Serena Buchwald signed with the University of Pittsburgh in November, and will head east this fall to pursue a neuroscience degree and an NCAA diving career. The Balmoral Hall School senior and Canada Games alumna will graduate from high school in June 2018, and is looking forward to joining the University of Pittsburgh Panthers team.
December 9
Anseeuw, Thiessen heading to Paralympics
Jamie Anseeuw and Dennis Thiessen (picture) were the first Manitobans to book their tickets to the 2018 Winter Olympic & Paralympic Games in PyeongChang, Korea. From Sandford, and Oak Bluff respectively, Anseeuw and Thiessen (Sochi 2014 gold medallist) will look to defend Canada’s Olympic wheelchair curling title.
Photo by Canadian Paralympic Committee
December 12
Chantal Van Landeghem announces her retirement
Olympic bronze medallist Chantal Van Landeghem hung up her racing suit at the end of 2017. Van Landeghem, 23, announced her retirement on December 12 and is shifting her focus to completing her master’s degree in Performance Psychology at the University of Manitoba.
Photo by Winnipeg Free Press
December 22
Three Manitobans named to Olympic team
Small-town hockey superstars Bailey Bram, Jocelyne Larocque (pictured), and Brigette Lacquette had a perfect end to their 2017 year. The three women were named to Canada’s Olympic roster and will pursue the nation’s fifth consecutive gold medal in women’s hockey at the PyeongChang Olympic Games next month.
Photo supplied by Jocelyne Larocque
