Ringette Canada announces officials and shot clock operators attending national championships
Wood Buffalo, AB – March 26, 2015 – Next Monday, the 2015 Tim Hortons Canadian Ringette Championships will get underway in Wood Buffalo, Alberta. Thirty-seven teams from across the country will compete for national titles in the U16 and U19 divisions, as well as the National Ringette League championship title. Ringette Canada today announced the officials and shot clock operators who have been selected to attend the national championships.
The officiating team at the event will consist of one director of officials, seven supervisors and 29 on-ice officials. They include:
Director of Officials:
Pete Smit, Abbotsford BC
Official Supervisors:
Chad Weatherall, Calgary AB
Iris Todd, Edmonton AB
Myles Blahut, Winnipeg MB
Lucie-Anne Ingoldsby, Halifax NS
Pat Turcotte, Hamilton ON
Jeff Ethier, Mirabel QC
Trevor Sorrell, Regina SK
On-Ice Officials:
Kim Wittner, Calgary AB
Jaimie Nelson, High River AB
Lori Kindopp, Red Deer AB
Melanie Stewart, Port Coquitlam BC
Michelle MacRae, Port Coquitlam BC
Eric Bohemier, Winnipeg MB
Marco Mallet, Dieppe NB
David Jones, Beaver Bank NS
Mandy Avery, Halifax NS
Brent Bunting, Barrie ON
Karen Meek, Bowmanville ON
Lorie Grant, Kitchener ON
Janyce Gunn, Oshawa ON
Jessica Lalonde, Ottawa ON
Mario Periard, Rockland ON
Becky Murray, Sunderland ON
Stephanie Renda, Thunder Bay ON
Alexander Hanes, Bath ON
Rob Drury, Whitby ON
Julie Mailhiot, Laval QC
Benoit Ducharme, Montreal QC
Marc-Andre Ouellet, Montreal QC
David Singh, Montreal QC
Emmanuelle Bourbeau, Gatineau QC
Richard Desfonds, Gatineau QC
Nicolas Manseau, Quebec City QC
Josee Belda, St. Eustache QC
Lesley Stronach, Regina SK
Aaron Armstrong, Tisdale SK
In an effort to provide national event experience to qualified shot clock operators, this year Ringette Canada has offered the opportunity for each province to send a minimum of one shot clock operator to attend the 2015 Tim Hortons Canadian Ringette Championships. This program will ensure that all games are played with qualified minor-officials and it will also provide training/mentorship opportunities for local minor officials.
As the national governing body, Ringette Canada has identified the importance of having trained shot clock operators and have begun the transition towards identifying them as major officials for its events. This pilot project is the first step in developing new training materials for shot clock operators and Ringette Canada will be launching an online shot clock operator-training module in the near future. The group of shot clock operators attending the event have tested the system and provided feedback. This project is a joint venture between Ringette Canada, the provinces and the local organizing committee.
The following shot clock operators will be attending the event:
Jamie Doerbecker, Waterloo ON
Michael Murphy, Oromocto NB
Karen Freund, Winnipeg MB
Nadine Hetherington, Saskatoon SK
Estelle Doiron, Moncton NB
Nancy Desfonds, Gatineau QC
Chris Hache, Halifax NS
Sharon Smit, Abbotsford BC
Mike Morris, Calgary AB
Ralph Bell, Moncton NB
John Francis, Kingston ON
Opening ceremonies will be held on Sunday, March 29th, games start Monday morning and finals will be held on Saturday, April 4th (U19 at 11:30, NRL at 13:30 and U16 at 16:00). Games will take place at the Frank Lacroix Arena, MacDonald Island Park and Casman Centre in Fort McMurray as well as the Anzac Recreation Centre and Fort McKay Arena. All-stars and the NRL Annual Awards will be announced at the closing award ceremony on Saturday night.
2015 has been proclaimed the ‘Year of Sport’ in Canada, which aims to celebrate the role that sport plays in our Canadian identity. Ringette Canada fully supports this proclamation and encourages all Canadians to celebrate sport in their communities.