RBC Training Ground searches for next generation of Olympians in Fredericton

Dozens of young athletes attended an RBC Training Ground event in Fredericton Sunday in hopes of taking their first step on an Olympic journey.

Dozens of young athletes had their shoes tied tight Sunday in hopes of taking their first step on an Olympic journey.

Athletes aged 14 to 25 packed into the Richard J. Currie Centre on the University of New Brunswick campus in Fredericton for the RBC Training Ground event. Now in its eleventh year, the program travels across Canada identifying talented kids to train as future Olympians.

“We’ve had over 30 athletes go to the Olympics through RBC Training Ground,” says Chantal Rochon, who works for the Canadian Sport Institute Atlantic as a performance pathway coordinator.

“There’s sports that are late entry sports that are not necessarily in the school system that it’s hard to start,” Rochon says. “For example, maybe rowing. It’s not something that you would start when you’re 12, but maybe you’re a really good basketball player and you’re really strong. Then that would transfer over to rowing, so it’s a way to transfer to some of those more niche sports and find athletes that way.”

The event takes athletes through a number of tests for strength, speed, power and endurance.

Rochon says the athletes come from a wide range of sporting backgrounds, including volleyball, track and rugby. A number of speedskaters took part, which officials said may be a result of Courtney Sarault of Moncton’s recent Olympic success.

One of those young skaters is Penelope Locas, who took part in the Training Ground for the second time.

“Honestly I think it is really cool,” says Locas. “It’s just fun to come here and see what we can do and maybe open some doors to other sports and other opportunities.”

Liam Tao, who already dreams of competing in the Olympics, said he likes what RBC is doing for young athletes.

“Even though I may not be selected, it’s still fun to be out here and test my abilities,” Tao says.

Young athletes also had the chance to speak with Maren Bradley, a member of the Canoe Kayak Canada Spring Kayak National Team who competed in the training ground. She is planning to compete in the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles but she spent the day cheering on and motivating the next generation.

“These testing events are not super hard, they’re more of a fun time,” says Bradley. “You get to show what you can do, and you get to meet new people and new athletes.”

She says her best advice to the next generation is to ask lots of questions.

“Ask away, learn new things,” she says. “Talk about sports you’d like to try, talk about sports that you’ve done in the past. This is a great opportunity to really broaden your spectrum of sports.”

Rochon says exposure at these events can help recruiters get a better sense of where the country’s top athletes live and help athletes in places like New Brunswick where there may be fewer opportunities than elsewhere in Canada.

“This is just really one of those once in a lifetime opportunities for them to showcase their talents here,” she said

The top 100 athletes from qualifiers across Canada a will advance to the national final later this year, where up to 35 future Olympians will receive funding and resources to develop skills in their new sport.

The Training Ground will return to the Maritimes on May 31 at the Canada Games Centre in Halifax.

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