Prince George is now home to one of only three paved nordic trails in Western Canada.
On any given day you might see a young ski racer on roller skis willing to let it rip on those steep downhills, risking road rash while hitting speeds of 52 kilometres an hour.
If they can do that without fear on unforgiving asphalt, just think about how easy it will be for them to go that fast when they get back to snow.
The Caledonia Nordic Ski Club used a million-dollar grant from the province’s Destination Development Fund and other grant money to pave a 2.6-kilometre section of trail at Otway Nordic Centre last fall and now the club’s biathlon and cross-country ski racers are benefitting from it, using roller skis to prepare for skiing once the snow flies.
Former Olympic champion and Nordiq Canada CEO Beckie Scott walked the paved path on Friday with Kevin Pettersen, chair of the committee that’s organizing the Olympic cross-country ski trials Dec. 10-16 set for Otway. That week of racing will determine Canada’s team for the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy.
There was some talk of the national cross-country teams coming to PG this summer to make Otway their home base for a training camp. But Scott says that’s not happening — there’s not enough funding for any national team summer camps this year.
“We don’t have any training camps planned for this summer, that’s the reality,” said Scott.
“That’s my mandate and my vision to attract different revenue sources to the program, to really get some people to believe in our team and our athletes and what we’re doing. The cost should not be downloaded on to athletes and that’s what’s happening now.”
Coached by Prince George native Dave Wood, Scott won Olympic gold in the sprint in 2002 at Salt Lake City and she went on to win a silver medal with Sara Renner in the team sprint four years later in Turin.
At the height of Scott’s competitive career before she retired ranked second in the world in 2006, she was focused entirely on being the best athlete she could be. She didn’t have to think about paying the cost if what it took to get to that medal podium.
It’s not like that now.
“The difference is the sport funding from the federal government was such that 20 years it was possible to be an athlete on the team and not pay for anything,” said Scott. “Finances was not a barrier, so I could travel and race with the national team and not pay for anything. That is not the case today.
“The federal finding has not increased in 20 years but with inflation it’s cut its value in half, so it’s really cut our ability as a national sport organization to support athletes to the degree and extent they need in order to be competitive in the world.”
Nordiq Canada received $600,000 in federal government funding to cover a two-year period form 2024-26. The money comes from the Own The Podium program, which is based on the performances of athletes in international competitions.
The odds are already stacked against Canadian athletes who face the rising costs of travel, meals and accommodations getting to their races, most of which are in Europe. Canadians are expected to compete against well-funded powerhouse nations such as Norway, Sweden, Germany, France, Italy and Czechia, where the top athletes are paid lucrative salaries and have sponsors beating down their doors.
“Our budget is a third of some of the mid-level nations and a tenth of (the strongest countries), so it’s a barrier,” said Scott. “Sport is so nation-building, it’s so unifying and people do understand the value, so it’s a mystery why we don’t see more funding from out of the government.
“The value is incredible to society, it’s inspiring young people, it’s the health benefits down the road. Especially a sport like cross-country skiing is not a niche sport, it’s a lifestyle sport and multiple generations can do it at the same time.”
The Caledonia club is hosting three biathlon training camps in July involving regional, provincial and national team athletes. That starts July 18 and will continue through to the end of the month. The athletes will be staying at the UNBC residences and eating meals at the cafeteria there, working out at the Northern Sport Centre with Simone Lamarche, the high-performance strength and conditioning coach for Engage Sport North.
Pettersen knows athletes from both sports want to come to train and he’s hopeful the cross-country teams will eventually come to Otway. He knows of a national lottery in Norway that raises money for that country’s ski teams and would like to see a similar lottery program for Canadian athletes.
“It seems like the national sport organizations are so focused on getting someone on the podium the base of the pyramid gets left. It would be great to have the government see this as an investment, rather than a cost, so they invest in physical activity and inspiring generations of active people, which will reduce health care costs in the future.
“The Canada Sport For Life model is awesome, but you have to think about how all the pieces work together, not just the very pinnacle at the high level of competition. Having a model where, like Norway, where they use lottery revenues to fund their programs, is a recipe for success.”
