October 24/03 5:14 am - B.C. News, New U.S. Coach

Posted by Editor on 10/24/03
 

O'Bee takes Wednesday Night Opener in Burnaby

Professional road cyclist Kirk O'Bee (Navigators) kicked off the weekly winter race series at the Burnaby Velodrome by defeating professional mountain biker Andreas Hestler (Rocky Mountain) and Canadian National Jr team member Marsh Cooper (Symmetrics) on October 22nd. O'Bee, Hestler, and Cooper took control of the Men's A 18km Points Race after lapping the field near the halfway mark of the event. O'Bee then lapped the field again by himself in an impressive display of speed to secure his points lead. Cooper came 2nd with Hestler in 3rd.

In the Men's B 14km Points Race, Gordon Ross (Escape Velocity), Ken Johnson (Escape Velocity) and Carey Squires (Campione) broke away from a disintegrating field after the first points sprint. The trio lapped the remnants of the field, with Ross picking up 2 more sprint wins to take the race.

Wednesday Night racing starts at 7:00 PM sharp at the Burnaby Velodrome. A, B, and C category races are offered, with a variety of Points, Scratch, Miss-n-Out, and Snowball formats on the schedule for winter 2003/2004. An overall Wednesday Night champion will be presented at the end of December, with the spring 2004 edition starting over in January 2004. Major race events at Burnaby this winter include the BVC Series on November 7-9 2003, January 10-11 2004, and May 8-9 2004.

Wednesday Night Races - October 22, 2003

Men's A - 18km Points Race
1. Kirk O'Bee - Navigators
2. Marsh Cooper - Symmetrics
3. Andreas Hestler - Rocky Mountain

Men's B - 14km Points Race
1. Gordon Ross - Escape Velocity
2. Carey Squires - Campione
3. Ken Johnson - Escape Velocity


PacificSport Victoria and Camosun College Launch New Initiative

October 24. Victoria, BC - PacificSport Victoria and Camosun College, leaders in the sport and academic communities, launched their vision for a unique Canadian centre for athletic and academic leadership in Victoria today.

The joint partnership introduces a Canadian Institute for Sport, Learning and Leadership as a place where Canada's high performance athletes and coaches, dedicated learners and future leaders come together to develop their potential, build life-long bonds and become national role models.

"High performance athletes, knowledgeable citizens and successful leaders share many qualities, including dedication, determination, reasoning and logic, the ability to compete successfully, and a passion to excel," said Dr. Liz Ashton, President of Camosun College. "This Institute will be a uniquely Canadian solution where world-class medal-winning athletes; skilled, knowledgeable citizens; and, visionary leaders will help develop and grow our nation, regions and local communities."

The Institute, to be situated on 6.15 hectares at Camosun College's Interurban campus, will combine facilities, programming and sport-related services. The proposed new sport facilities will include a triple gymnasium, lit all-weather playing fields, a stadium and PacificSport Victoria's athlete residence program, SportHouse Victoria. Other facilities include teaching and learning classrooms, sport training and research facilities, meeting and dialogue facilities, and student residences.

"In addition to much-needed facilities and programs for our high performance athletes and expanded hosting opportunities for national and international sport events and conferences, the Institute's holistic approach also includes the delivery of health and wellness services to the entire community," said Roger Skillings, President and CEO of PacificSport Victoria. "Through the development of unique partnerships with schools and community programs, we believe we can make Greater Victoria a model for our country in terms of our population's overall level of fitness and good health."

The Institute will be home to two new Camosun applied degree programs being developed in coaching and sport administration, areas much needed in Canada, and to expansions into the College's health and wellness program areas. In addition, partnerships with local school districts will provide leadership training and other opportunities for high school students.

The goal is to have the first phase of the Institute complete by 2005, all phases complete by 2008, and fully operational by 2009, in time to welcome the world to the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games. Initially sponsored by Camosun College and PacificSport Victoria, it is anticipated that other organizations will share the vision and contribute to the new center for athletic and academic leadership, including the public, corporate Canada and all three levels of government.

The PacificSport Canadian Sport Centre Victoria consists of six national training centres (athletics, cycling, rowing, rugby, swimming, triathlon), and nine regional training centres (badminton, canoe-kayak, curling, cycling, diving, field hockey, swimming, synchronized swimming, tennis). The centre is one of eight Canadian Sport Centres, including Atlantic, Calgary, Montréal, Manitoba, Ontario, Saskatchewan and Vancouver.

Camosun College is one of the largest comprehensive educational institutions on Vancouver Island, serving more than 18,000 full and part-time learners from its two campuses. Its over 80 different program offerings lead to associate degrees, diplomas, certificates and trades certification in fields such as business, health and human services, arts and sciences, computer and engineering technologies and apprenticeship and entry level trades training. The College offers over 300 university transfer courses in the arts and sciences and has the largest college co-operative education program in western Canada. In addition, Camosun offers a wide range of adult upgrading and college preparatory programming and hundreds of continuing education courses each year.


U.S. Sprint Track Program Director Named
Courtesy USA Cycling

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (October 24, 2003) - USA Cycling announced today the appointment of Andrzej Bek as the Sprint Track Program Director for the U.S. Cycling Team. A familiar face to USA Cycling, Bek returns after successfully holding a similar position from 1986-'88, and again from 1994-'99. Bek's responsibilities are simple - to mold Olympians out of the current crop of talented American track sprinters - a task all to familiar to him.

Bek led the U.S. Cycling team to two silver medals in the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta, Ga. as the coach of Marty Nothstein and Erin Hartwell who placed second in the men's sprint and one kilometer time trial respectively. Bek's successful experience as a coach and director compliments his storied past as a competitive cyclist that brought him a bronze medal in the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich, Germany on the track.

Bek returns to USA Cycling after one year as the Director of the Saturn Cycling Team where he led the team to arguably its best season ever, capturing both the individual and team titles in the USA Cycling National Racing Calendar Series.

Director of Athletics for USA Cycling, Steve Johnson, is excited about the return of Bek to USA Cycling and the potential he brings with him. "I am very excited that Andrzej has agreed to join us as we rebuild our sprint track program. Not only is he intimately familiar with the unique challenges of the American cycling system; but he also brings a needed combination of international coaching and organizational experience to the effort."

Tom Schuler, General Manager of the Saturn Cycling Team echoed the comments of Johnson when supporting Bek's new appointment. "Andrzej contributed an immense amount to the success of the Saturn Cycling Team in 2004. Andrzej brought a level of commitment and focus to the team and all our athletes responded to his intensity with incredible results, I give Andrzej all the credit for motivating our guys. I know that Andrzej will shine in his new position with USA Cycling. Based on my 12 months with Andrzej, the USA Cycling Team and its athletes are very fortunate to have Andrzej on board."