Countdown to start of World Championships winding down

Friday, August 19, 2011

Release highlights

• Six days to start of World Championships in Athletics
• The Canadian team is in Changwon City for their final preparation camp
• Of 32 Canadian athletes 13 are making their first World Championship appearance
• Team Canada media guide
• CBC television and streaming broadcast schedule

Ottawa – The Canadian track and field team is in full preparation mode with six days to go until the start of the 2011 World Championships in Athletics.  2,500 athletes from 207 countries are expected to compete for world supremacy in South Korea over a span of nine days.

The Canadian team is currently in Changwon City, South Korea preparing, “Our final phase of training is going very well. We are acclimating to the heat and humidity, simulating the Daegu schedule in training, and beginning our taper to ensure full readiness when competition starts later next week,” said Head Coach Alex Gardiner.  The first group of athletes will make the trip from the final preparation camp into Daegu on August 24.  Gardiner adds, “Jessica Zelinka is looking better than ever, Jim Steacy has surpassed his Beijing form and the men’s relay team is sharpening their exchanges. We’re calm, confident and committed to leaving nothing in the tank with each performance.”

Team Canada: Mix of old and new

Of the thirty two Canadians competing in Korea, 19 are World Championship veterans with 13 making their first appearance.  Leading the way for the veterans are Dylan Armstrong of Kamloops, B.C., Jared Connaughton of New Haven, P.E.I., Perdita Felicien of Pickering, Ont., and Jessica Zelinka of Calgary, Alta. 

Armstrong, a veteran of the 2007 and 2009 World Championships, enters with the world’s leading shot put performance of 22.21-metres.  The 2010 Commonwealth Games champion just missed the podium at the 2008 Olympic Games finishing fourth by a mere centimetre.  Connaughton won Pan Am Games silver in 2007, placed sixth at the 2008 Olympics and 5th at the 2009 World Championships as a member of the 4x100-metres relay team.  Felicien, the 2003 World Champion, finished eight at the last edition of the World Championships (2009) and won silver in 2007.  As an up and coming athlete Jessica Zelinka finished 11th in the heptathlon at the 2005 World Championships held in Helsinki.  She missed the 2007 edition due to a foot injury suffered at the Pan Am Games where she won gold.  Zelinka again missed the 2009 World Championships, this time to give birth to her daughter Anika.  The 2008 Olympics fifth place finisher is back in full form and will challenge for a top placing. 

Phylicia George of Markham, Ont., and Julie Labonté of Ste-Justine, Que., are among the athletes making their first World Championship appearance.  George shaved off over a half a second off her personal best in the 100-metre hurdles this season and won the inaugural National Track League title in the hurdles.  Labonté continues to improve the Canadian women’s shot put record and enjoyed a successful season with the University of Arizona winning the NCAA title with a Canadian record throw of 18.31 metres.  Kimberly Hyacinthe, who was part of the 2009 World Championships team as a member of the women’s 4x400-metres program, will make her individual debut in Korea in the 200-metres. 

Follow the World Championships with Athletics Canada and CBC

Athletics Canada will keep its fans informed throughout the World Championships through daily recaps and live updates via Facebook and Twitter.  CBC will feature extensive coverage of the World Championships with daily television and streaming coverage.  The full broadcast schedule is available at http://bit.ly/pugpwl.    

-AC-