BC Athletics Bulletin

Your source of up-to-date Athletics news in BC. If you came to this page via email link, click here to get to main BCA site.

ISSUE #37-2007
Wednesday, November 14, 2007

Highlights from this issue:

Sport BC Athlete of the Year Award nominations due Nov. 23
Dr. Frank Dick to speak at Athletics Canada Technical Congress
2008 National Cross Country Program – preliminary selection guidelines
Job Opportunity – Director, National Coaching Institute BC
Job Opportunities – ASRA

FROM THE BCA OFFICE

Sport BC Athlete of the Year Award Nominations

Sport BC’s Athlete of the Year Awards is the longest-standing sport recognition event in the country. Awards in 16 different categories are given each year to athletes, coaches and officials based on their performance and contribution to sport in the province.

Sport BC hosts this annual gala event to celebrate the achievements of BC’s best and brightest sport participants.

2007 Athlete of the Year Awards

Sport BC proudly presents the 42nd Annual Athlete of the Year Awards to be held in March 2008 at the Hyatt Regency Vancouver.

Our theme of “Actively Growing Together” accurately reflects the way sport brings together communities and partners who believe that working together is the only way to grow and prosper to and beyond 2010. British Columbians are actively leading the way to healthier lifestyles.

Nominations are vetted to ensure that the nominee meets the criteria of the category in which he or she is being nominated. In January 2008 the Selection Committee, comprised of sport media and sport sector representatives, will meet to select finalists in each of the categories. Recipients are announced at the awards dinner in March.

Nominations are posted on this website in an editable Word format. New this year, all nominations must be typed or word-processed.

Nominations can be submitted by:
Fax: 604-737-3097
or
E-mail: aoynominations(at)sport.bc.ca

For more information about Sport BC's 42nd Athlete of the Year Awards or the nomination process, please call 604-737-3099.

2007-2008 BC Athletics Athlete Assistance Program application

Long Term Athlete Development - A Sport Parent’s Guide

This guide is an indispensable tool for any coach, club or association looking to introduce parents to good sport for their children. The latest (but not the last) of Canadian Sport for Life publications includes A Sport Parent’s Guide, a look at LTAD (long-term athlete development) from the parent’s perspective. Introducing concepts such as physical literacy, the five S’s (stamina, strength, speed, skill & suppleness (flexibility), this guide introduces the seven stages of athlete development and demonstrates how parents can support their child as they move through these stages. A must have for any parent of active children; available to download from www.ltad.ca.

Is the Purchase of Track and Field Equipment From the USA In Your Near Term Plans?

As the Canadian dollar approaches $1.09 in comparison to the American dollar, for those contemplating purchasing track and field equipment from a United States supplier, this might be the ideal time to do so. Even if you do not wish to make the purchase for a few months, perhaps it would be wise to convert some Canadian dollars to American dollars and place them in an American interest bearing account.

There is no certainty that the Canadian dollar will not appreciate further against its USA counterpart—predicting the future trend of currencies is a hazardous occupation. But one thing I have learned in the past is that whenever an asset appreciates very quickly, as has the Canadian dollar, there is a very good chance that a top in its value is fast approaching and that drop in value is very possible.

For those who intend to make a purchase but not for the next three to six months, perhaps a good method would be to establish the cost of the purchase and place half that amount in a USA account. By doing so, you have hedged against a fall in the Canuck buck with at least 50% of the purchase price.

Contact me if you need any further information or a few tips on purchasing from a US supplier.

Team BC Athletes and Coaches:

If you are a Team BC athlete attending Grade 9 or 10, please read on about an exciting opportunity to attend the next BC Olympic & Paralympic Youth Leadership Academy in Kimberley-Cranbrook.

The BC Olympic & Paralympic Youth Leadership Academy is an opportunity for young people to learn about the Olympic movement, Olympic values, individual leadership styles and abilities, and how to tackle projects and issues with teamwork. The next Academy will be held February 21-24, 2008 in Kimberley-Cranbrook in conjunction with the 2008 BC Winter Games. For more details or to apply, please visit the Academy website at www.bcacademy.ca. The application deadline is December 1, 2007.

NCCP Level 3 Combined Events Course

OTFA is hosting a Level 3 combined events course at the Toronto Track & Field Centre (York University) on November 16-17-18. Sue Wise will be the instructor.

Kamloops Track and Field presents - “An Evening with Gary Reed”

Time: 6:00 pm-10pm
Roast Beef/Chicken Dinner, Roast Potatoes, Vegetables, Salad and Dessert

Tickets: $25.00 per person, all proceeds to Kamloops Track and Field Club
Contact Judy j2armstrong@shaw.ca for tickets.

2007 BC Athletics Annual Awards

For the descriptions of categories awarded and nomination forms for the 2007 BC Athletics Annual Awards visit www.bcathletics.org/main/awards.htm

Attention Event Directors

This is a reminder that as of April 2007, there has been a new event sanctioning policy in place. Among other changes, a $25 surcharge has been added for sanctioning applications that are received less than 30 days prior to the event, so please apply for sanctioning in a timely matter.

Children's Fitness Tax Credit Information

The Children's Tax Credit is an initiative put forth by the Government of Canada to provide some financial relief to parents to pay for the rising cost of organized sports, in order to keep our children involved in physical activity. The form can be found on the BC Athletics website at www.bcathletics.org/main/pdf/cftc_form.doc

Below are the instructions (also available from the above link) for filling out the form.

Receipt Number:

The receipt number includes the child's BC Athletics membership number preceded by the applicable year – example: 2007-95-24187

Calculating eligible fees:

Registration and membership costs can include the costs of administration, instruction and the rental of facilities. If the fees charged to parents include part for accommodation, travel, food, or beverages then this part must be deducted when calculating the part of the fees that qualify for the tax credit. For example if club membership fees total $400 and includes a charge of $50 for travel and $50 for a club uniform then the eligible amount would be $400 - $50 - $50 = $300.

Description of Eligible Programs:

Eligible activities must include the following in order to qualify. Make sure descriptions of club programs makes mention and details all of the following:

If you have any further questions please contact Sam Collier – Manager, Registration & Membership Services at (604) 737-3177 or sam.collier@bcathletics.org.

Athletics Canada

Dr. Frank W. Dick to speak at 2007 Technical Congress

OTTAWA – Athletics Canada is pleased to announce that Dr. Frank W. Dick will speak at Athletics Canada’s Technical Congress held November 23 to 25, 2007 at the University of Toronto. The Congress is held in partnership with the Canadian Athletics Coaching Centre (CACC).

Dr. Frank Dick is the President of the European Athletics Coaches Association, has held the position of Chairman of the British Olympic Coaches Advisory Programme and Director of Coaching for the British Athletics Federation and is a member of the IAAF Coaches Commission. He was inducted into the UK Coaches Hall of Fame in 1999 and in 2001 received the title of UK Sporting Hero by Sport UK.

He is Britain's foremost authority in applying the performance sciences to effective coaching for high performance. In his inspirational speeches, he transfers the principles of high achievement in sport to the business world with an innovative approach which is both refreshing and compelling. Renowned as one of the best motivational speakers today, Frank Dick's presentations are highly amusing and anecdotal, challenging and inspirational, giving particularly valuable ideas on how to bring out the best in everyone.

The deadline to register for the Technical Congress is Friday November 16. Please contact Nicole Clarke to register or for more information: nclarke@athletics.ca or 613-260-5580 ext. 3309.

2008 National Cross Country Program – Preliminary information

Due to unforeseen NACAC XC delays, Athletics Canada (AC) is unable to publish full details about the 2008 Cross Country National Team Programs at this time. In order to allow coaches and athletes to adequately prepare for the Canadian Cross Country Championships, AC wishes to minimally offer the selection guidelines since the event is just a few weeks away. Further details will be made available by AC staff at the championships in Guelph.

2008 National Team Staff Applications

The 2008 National Team Staff Applications for Coach and Manager positions have now been posted on the AC website: www.athletics.ca/page.asp?id=20.

Deadline for applications to be received by email or fax is December 1, 2007. Applicants interested in the cross country projects are encouraged to apply by Thursday, November 15.

Please contact Melissa Dowling, National Team Programs Manager at mdowling@athletics.ca or (613) 260-5580 x3307 with any questions.

The Gold Standard

The November edition of the Gold Standard is now available. This month's newsletter includes:

Athletics Canada Desktop and Videos

Downloading Athletics Canada’s Desktop is a great way to keep up to date with all the latest news and events. It features the latest news stories, calendar of events, world rankings, a featured athlete as well as a customizable news feeder so you can keep in touch with news from around the world (IAAF, TSN, Sportsnet, CBC, CNN, NHL).

The Desktop operates in your computer’s background while you are working, playing or surfing the internet keeping all the latest information one-click away.

A video section has recently been added to the website. The page features a number of videos highlighting the 2007 season as well as some great moments in Canadian athletics history. We are still adding videos; please check back often to see the new additions.

Results from around the Track (and Field)

Cross Country

HERE’S AN EVENT FOR MASTERS – RUNNERS NEEDED!

On Sunday, November 18th 2007, the Snohomish Track Club is hosting the annual Canadian-American Masters Cross Country Challenge in conjunction with the Northwest Region Cross Country Championships (website www.pntf.org/championships/crossopenregionals.html). All masters of age 35 and over of all abilities are invited to participate. The Masters 8k for men and the 6k for women will be held at 11:30 am at Lower Woodland Park near Seattle. If we can get enough Canadian runners, we will rent a bus for the trip. If you are interested in participating, please call George Gluppe at 604-469-7946 as soon as possible.

officials

Level 1 Officials Clinic –
Introduction to Officiating Athletics (T&F, Rd & Cross Country Running)

Hosted by: Kamloops Track & Field Club
Date: Wednesday, Nov. 21
Location: Sahali Secondary School, 255 Arrowstone Dr., Kamloops, B.C., V2C lP8

Instructor:
Alwilda van Ryswyk,
#90 l950 Braeview Pl.
Kamloops, B.C. VlS lR8
Ph: 250-372-9640
Email alvan50@shaw.ca

Club Officials Needed

BCA Officials provide a valuable service to Clubs, there is a great need to recruit new, young, energetic officials, as many of the current officials have been contributing service to BCA for a very long time.

The BCA Officials' Committee would like to invite all Clubs to place a Link on their website to BCA Officials' web page through BCA's site. On this link please list the number of officials that are associated or belong to your Club. If there are no officials in your Club, please let your members know that a recruitment drive is on for new officials.

If all Clubs encourage at least one member to become an official, the number of officials would increase dramatically and a lasting service would be provided to our athletes.

Job / Volunteer opportunities

Job Opportunity at the National Coaching Institute–British Columbia

Director, NCI-BC

Located on the University of Victoria campus, the National Coaching Institute–British Columbia (NCI–BC) offers advanced coaching programs to achieve its mission: to develop world-class professional coaches who are capable of preparing athletes for podium performances in sport and for life outside sport.

Due to the retirement of the incumbent, the NCI is seeking a Director to lead the development and delivery of programs aimed at improving the quality of coaching.

Job Opportunities with Aboriginal Sports and Recreation Association BC

For job opportunities with specific BC Athletics member clubs, please see the BC Athletics home page under "What's Happening."

Resources

2007 USOC Olympic Coach E-Magazine, fall issue

SIRC Newsletter - Female Participation

Females that participate in sport and fitness have better self-image, higher self-esteem and decreased likelihood of depression. However the Canadian Strategy on Sport and Physical Activity for Girls and Women indicate that girls and women are underrepresented in all areas of sport. Many barriers keep women from participating including time and comfort level however there are ways to motivate women to participate including role models and creating a welcoming environment.

SIRC would like to thank the Canadian Association for the Advancement of Women and Sport and Physical Activity (CAAWS) and Women in Coaching (Coaching Association of Canada), for their assistance with this issue of the SIRC Newsletter.