The province came to Prince George on Friday to see Otway in action.
Prince George's nordic ski centre has been operational for decades, for both cross-country and biathlon disciplines. It has hosted the national championships and has been on a path of facility upgrades long before the 2015 Canada Winter Games bid was won by Prince George, but since the Games are coming soon they went into a renovation sprint.
On Friday, the launch of BC Sports Weekend, provincial officials met there with local organizers to unveil the new biathlon centre. It was completely redesigned and rebuilt. The provincial government contributed about $400,000 to the Otway project, and the minister responsible for sports, Quesnel's Coralee Oakes, led the proceedings. She did so by announcing more than a quarter-million-dollars in new Games preparation funds.
Oakes declared that $150,000 will go to the Northern Sport Strategy, a program designed to further develop sport in the north, plus $125,000 would go to Hosting BC specifically for test events.
Otway will be home to some of those pre-2015 events. The Western Canadian biathlon championships go Feb. 1-2 and the Western Canadian cross-country ski championships are set for Feb. 14-16.
"There are 441 days until we host the rest of the nation, and this facility will be active on Day 442," said Stu Ballantyne, 2015 Canada Winter Games CEO. "This is a great upgrade that will, for many years to come, allow kids to pursue national and Olympic dreams."
"I think a lot of times people don't think of cross-country skiing as 'their sport' because it was just done and usually you weren't racing, it was common part of growing up around here," said Oakes. "When people ask me what 'my sport' is, because I'm the minister for that, I tell them it's cross-country skiing because I did so much of that as a kid, and I think that is important to acknowledge for everyone who grew up with that. A lot of places didn't have that opportunity in their back yard in the winter, but we do. It's part of who we are."
For those taking it to the next level - and Otway caters to all those levels from casual rec skier to active Olympic hopeful - there are the competitive organizations fostering elite skills in athletes, coaches, officials and facilities managers. Kevin Pettersen, president of the Caledonia Nordic Ski Club, represented them at the funding announcement and biathlon centre opening on Friday.
"We have been able to create a facility here that is world class," said Pettersen. "We have such an opportunity to leverage for the future. [The provincial government investment and Canada Winter Games event] has provided us with the ability to multiply the funding and bring people together."
More than just medals and cheering, the Canada Winter Games and its pre- and post-Games companion events creates a climate of excellence to which ever place gets to host it, Pettersen explained.
"It's really about inspiration. What's happened here is, the Canada Winter Games has inspired a city, inspired a region, and created a facility that is serving these athletes and also serving the whole community," he said.
