When you're a biathlete of Sarah Beaudry's calibre, distance education is as much a part of the game as skiing and shooting a rifle.
Between trips to Europe to see how she stacks up against the world's top junior racers, and skiing at national or provincial events, she's missed more days of classtime in 2012 than she's attended as a Grade 12 student at Duchess Park secondary school. She still gets good marks, but that's only due to her will to succeed in academics to the same level she's achieved as one of Canada's top young athletes.
It won't arrive in time to help Beaudry perform that balancing act between grades and guns, but the new Canadian Sport School Academy Northern B.C. program unanimously approved Tuesday by the School District 57 trustees should help pave a smoother road to the top for the next wave of elite athletes coming through the school system.
Beginning in September, academy students in Grades 10-12 at the five Prince George high schools will have the opportunity to train in a group setting with other athletes during regular school time, earning credits for their afternoon athletic activities that will count toward their diplomas. During morning school hours, the students will take their academic courses at their home schools.
Working in the afternoon with their peers at the yet-to-be-determined site of the academy, they will have time to work on sport-specific training as well as participate group training activities. Instruction will be provided by an accredited district teacher and students will have also access to the sport science staff and resources of PacificSport Northern B.C.
"A lot of time, kids have had to leave to get the better training and the environment they need," said Kristen Harrott, PacificSport Northern B.C.'s general manager. "This is the first step to keeping the training here and keeping kids here longer.
"I think this is a game-changer and it's not just a one-time deal, these kids come through year after year. This is a full-year, full-school deal and I think it's going to provide a lot of inspiration for a lot of kids. It hasn't been provided to these individual [sport] athletes, it's been more team sports. It might mean there's a lot more Prince George Olympians coming through the pipe and [the 2015 Canada Winter Games] is the start of that inspiration."
Harrott said establishment of the academy could lead to development of regional training centres for sports like cross-country skiing, which would create coaching opportunities. That might convince athletes like Beaudry, who plans moving to Canmore, Alta., to stay in Prince George, where she could attend a postsecondary school close to home.
Students in the sport academy will pay $1,250 per school year and it's limited to a maximum of 20 students. To be considered for the program, students will have to have been already identified by a provincial sport organization. Grade 10 students must be already selected to a regional/zone team that competes at a provincial championship, while academy students in Grade 11 and 12 have to be members of provincial teams.
PacificSport Northern B.C. president Anne Pousette, whose daughter Sarah is close to Olympic team status as a long-track speed skater based in Calgary, said the academy will not only save families money by keeping their kids close to home but it also will create a team atmosphere that will inspire the athletes.
"When you get a group of athletes who have the opportunity to train together in an environment where they're being supported -- the training environment is everything in terms of building self-confidence and pushing it to the next notch," said Pousette. "When you're on your own, it's easy not to go that next step, both academically and in their sport. There's a real opportunity for them to work off each other and all come out better."
