Team ’s Official Newsletter for the 2009 Jeux du January 2009

Inside this issue: Countdown to the The 2009 Mission Team 2 Welcome to Team Ontario’s first newsletter for the 2009 Canada Team Ontario Legacy Project Summer Games. I sincerely hope you enjoy reading our newsletter and 2 find the content timely and informative. We’d love to hear from you with Laura Jarvis - Volunteer 2 your suggestions for future articles, notices or other topics of interest. Team Ontario’s newsletter has become somewhat of a tradition for the Dave Saad hangs up his cleats 2 Canada Games and we will continue to publish new editions of the Michael Barry’s newsletter prior to leaving for PEI and it will be published daily 3 Canada Games Memories throughout the two weeks of the games. Please send your comments and suggestions to your Mission Staff member or to any member of the Team Ontario Ambassadors 4 communications team. Team Ontario Training Camp 4 I am extremely pleased to serve as your Chef de Mission for Team Ontario. This is my National Artist Program 4 fourth time as Chef and once again I am very excited about the prospects for Team Ontario as we prepare to compete for the Canada Games Flag in this August. Dates to Remember 4 Your Mission Team has been hard at work planning and making all the arrangements in PEI so all our athletes, coaches and managers can dedicate their full attention to ensure everyone is prepared to perform to the best of their ability during the Canada Games. Please send your comments, articles, and photos to Team Ontario In September 2008 our Assistant Chef de Mission, Anita Comella, and myself travelled to Communications PEI to inspect all the sport venues and locations for Team Ontario’s special events such as pep rallies and receptions. We had a chance to see the residences where athletes, [email protected] coaches and managers from Team Ontario and other provinces will reside and dine during John Sims, Chair the Games. Everything looks fabulous and the host society in PEI have done a great job in Jason Birch thinking about every detail and I am confident these Games will be an experience you will Cheryl Finn fondly remember forever. Bryan Ozorio Marlene Stirrett-Matson Be sure to visit our website, www.teamontario.info, regularly for updates and information www.teamontario.info on important topics such as Team Ontario training camps, registration, travel, sport technical packages, spectator accommodations, tickets and much more.

Congratulations to those Team Ontario members who have already been selected and good luck to those still vying for positions on the team. To everyone, train hard and work hard to achieving your goals on and off the field of play. Best wishes to everyone and I look forward to meeting you during the comings months.

Sincerely, Blair McIntosh, Chef de Mission Team Ontario 2009

Team Ontario website – look who’s visiting www.teamontario.info

Team Ontario’s website has been attracting quite a bit of attention nationally and even internationally since it was launched late last fall. Here is just a sampling of locations from where people are visiting the website: Ottawa Mississauga Kamloops, BC Winnipeg, MB Waterloo Kitchener Victoria, BC Dallas, Texas Thunder Bay Truro, NS Hamilton Knoxville, Tennessee Guelph North Bay Burlington New York, New York Montreal Sudbury Cochrane Introducing Team Ontario’s Mission Staff Laura Jarvis - an outstanding volunteer!

Core Mission Team Blair McIntosh Chef de Mission Anita Comella Assistant Chef de Mission Rick Beaver Administration John Sims Communications

Mission Staff Week One Week Two Bryan Ozorio Cheryl Finn F Christine Craig F Dave Saad M Erin Hamilton Soccer F Athletics Janis Kawamoto Beach Volleyball Swimming Jeremy Cross Rugby Soccer M Jill White Volleyball M Kellie Hinnells Cycling Wrestling F Mission Team staffer Laura Jarvis was recently recognized for over Laura Jarvis Team Admin 13 years of outstanding volunteer service as a Scout leader. Laura is Marlene Stirrett-Matson National Artist Program NAP pictured here with Ontario's Secretary of the Cabinet Shelly Jamieson as she accepts her Spirit of the Ontario Public Service Award. Jason Birch Media

Stephanie Johnston Canoe/Kayak Congratulations Laura! Steve Sevor Basketball M Athletics Mission Staff “Iron Man” Dave Saad Team Ontario’s 2009 Legacy Project Hangs Up His Cleats

First implemented for the in Dave Saad, the Cal Ripken Jr. of North Bay , , Team Ontario set a goal baseball, rounded the bases for the last of leaving a legacy behind to commemorate time in late 2008 after hitting a homer in a our participation in the games. North Bay Senior League playoff game.

Each member of Team Dave, who is on Team Ontario’s Mission Ontario was asked to donate a minimum staff for a fourth term, has been playing of 10 new or gently used children’s books. high calibre baseball for over 50 years! Many went far beyond. Books were brought to training camps where they were added to Quoting from an article in the North a growing collection. The outcome was Bay Nugget about Dave’s last game, “The past fantastic! Over 4,700 new and gently used children’s books few years, in his mid-50s, Saad was still almost were collected and brought to the Yukon for the Commissioner impossible to strike out, always putting a ball in play. The to distribute to aboriginal children in communities all across the league does not keep batting statistics, but he has been Yukon. Each donated book had a bookplate inserted inside the front cover that let the reader know the book was part of the among the home run leaders each year since senior baseball Team Ontario legacy program. was revived in 2002.”

Team Ontario will once again coordinate a book drive to collect Besides his competitive nature, Dave has devoted much of his new or gently used children’s books that will be distributed to love for the sport of baseball as a leader in developing aboriginal youth. We are very excited that Ontario’s current opportunities for youth to become players, coaches and Lieutenant Governor, the Hon. David C. Onley has vowed to mentors. Dave has been recognized numerous times in his continue the programs started by his predecessor and will be a community and in the North Bay Sports Hall of Fame as a partner in the program. His Honour will assist in distributing the player, a coach and as a builder of sport. books collected by Team Ontario to aboriginal youth in need of reading materials. If you happen to run into Dave during the games in PEI be Stay tuned for details on when and where your books can be sure to ask him about his Baseball Fantasy Camp experiences dropped off. Start collecting your books now! where he got to play with many baseball legends.

Page 2 Team Ontario 2009 Reflections from a Team Ontario alumnus

ichael Barry, may not exactly be a household name in Canadian sports circles, but he has quietly gone about his business as a professional M cyclist to develop a reputation as one of the world’s top athletes in the gruelling sport of road racing. Michael has also established himself as an excellent writer and penned a book titled “Inside the Postal Bus: My Ride With Lance Armstrong and the U.S. Postal Cycling Team” which features insights to the world of professional cycling and cyclists including his former team mate Lance Armstrong. Yes, Lance Armstrong! This Barry guy must be a pretty good rider you say. And a great rider he is!

While the mainstream media in Beijing focused their attention on European favourites in the incredibly tough 2008 Olympic men’s road race, Michael came very close to pulling off the unexpected and finished the nearly six and half hour, 245km race in ninth place - just 16 seconds back of the winner!

Together, with some of my best friends, we discovered something new, our names were in the provincial media. Michael sets the pace for Team High Road Columbia during the 60th Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré, France.

each meal with ate with other athletes from all over Canada. Today, Michael is a member of one of the hottest teams in We learned about their homes, lives and sports. pro cycling, Team Columbia and is ready to embark on a tough season of racing in events all over the world. We The Games was memorable not only for our victories but also contacted Michael before Christmas at his home in Spain to for the camaraderie. Together, with some of my best friends, ask if he has any special memories about his time as a Team we discovered something new, our names were in the Ontario athlete and his Canada Games experience in 1993 in provincial media, and we had stepped up to a new level in Kamloops. The following is what Michael had to say about his experience at the Games. sport. When I competed at the Commonwealth Games a year later in Victoria, I had a greater understanding of what Games “The Canada Games provided me with a unique experience were about, how to prepare myself, and how to make the that helped prepare me for the Commonwealth Games, and most of the experience due to my experiences at the Canada then the Olympics. Competing for Ontario was an honour and Games. the Games in Kamloops was an adventure. Having a goal going into a competition is important, but it is We left Toronto on a plane full of athletes of all disciplines; equally as important to learn and grow from the experience: the ambiance on the flight was memorably fun as we were a enjoy it, meet people, learn about Canada, and reach new team traveling together to represent our province nationally. I levels.” was young, 17 and had only competed at competitions where Michael Barry other cyclists were present. The Canada Games brought all of Note: visit Michael’s website to read his article published in the NY the sports together; we roomed with baseball players and at Times about his Olympic experience. www.michaelbarry.ca

Team Ontario 2009 Page 3 Team Ontario Communications Needs Your Help

he National Artist Program (NAP) at the 2009 Canada We’d love to hear from all sports about what’s new in your Summer Games will bring together 39 young artists from preparations for the Canada Summer Games. Let us know all provinces and territories to work under the leadership when your teams are selected, when important pre-games T of professional artists in a two week collaborative competition are happening or any other stories of interest for our mentorship residency. The program will provide opportunities readers. Digital photos are also welcome. for creative collaboration with other artists and for performances and presentations of art. For example, do you have siblings on the same team? Do you have athletes whose parents competed in past games? Do you Team Ontario is looking for three artists to represent our know of recent awards bestowed on athletes, coaches or managers? province in Prince Edward Island between August 15 and 29,

2009. The successful candidates must be between the ages Please send information to your Mission Staff or John Sims of 16 and 22, have demonstrated artistic excellence in their Team Ontario Communications at [email protected] discipline, have experience in working in a collaborative environment with artists from other disciplines, and be residents of Ontario. CALLING ALL AMBASSADORS! Since 1967, the Canada Games have successfully provided Are you a leader? Have a great an important and exciting competitive environment for young attitude? Love the spotlight? athletes from every province and territory. In Prince Edward Island, there will be over 3600 athletes, coaches and Then you could be selected as a Team Ontario managers plus officials, media and spectators. The 2009 Ambassador! Athletes from all sports will be Canada Summer Games will be the sixth time the National selected to represent Team Ontario for opening and Artist Program has been included. The young artists who closing ceremonies, media interviews and other special, have had the opportunity to represent Ontario found it to be high profile activities. an outstanding creative, personal and collaborative How to be selected: experience. 1. Fill out the ambassador profile application in your registration package and submit to your manager. For more information and application forms, visit: 2. Applications will be reviewed by a Mission Team www.teamontario.info/nap.htm panel and you will be notified if successful. Deadline for applications is Feb 20, 2009 Ambassadors are leaders who use their athletic abilities and positive attitudes to motivate their team mates and all of Team Ontario.

Team Ontario Quick Facts: • Team Ontario has won the Canada Games flag 9 times for In partnership with the Ministry of Health Promotion and summer games and 8 times for winter games. • Team Ontario 2009 will be comprised of 361 athletes + 76 University of Toronto, Team Ontario is excited to bring you coaches/managers + 18 mission staff = 455 a training camp on June 12-14, 2009.

With planning well on its way, this 3 day, residential Tickets for all Canada Games events are training camp will see 450 athletes, coaches and Get Your now on sale and available by calling 1-877-964-4263. managers come together to participate in variety of Tickets! For more information visit the Games activities including team building sessions, drug free sport website at www.2009canadagames.ca seminars, sport specific training, media interview skills training and much, much more!! The training camp is an excellent opportunity to come together with your team to Dates to Remember: strengthen relationships as well as interact with athletes, Jan 31 Meeting with Mission Staff and PSOs coaches and managers from other sports and from across the province. We look forward to this camp as a big step Feb 20 Deadline for National Artist Program applications in gaining momentum and creating energy leading up to May 4 Coaches - deadline for full Level III certification the 2009 Canada Summer Games. June 12-14 Team Ontario Training Camp - U of T If you have any questions about the training camp, please August 14 Week One sports depart Toronto for the games contact your Mission Staff or visit www.teamontario.info for updates. Hope to see you there! August 22 Week Two sports depart Toronto for the games

August 29 Games conclude

Page 4 Team Ontario 2009