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Five CAAWS Affiliated Women Head to Beijing for Olympic and Paralympic Games
July 30, 2008
Ottawa, ON. . . Five women who have been associated with the Canadian Association for the Advancement of Women and Sport and Physical Activity (CAAWS) will be involved in significant roles at this summer’s Olympic and Paralympic Games in Beijing, China. Two will be involved as technical officials, two with the Canadian team and one will be assisting with media operations.
Betty Dermer-Norris, (Fredericton, NB) who served on the CAAWS Board a few years ago is Director, Team Operations for the Canadian Olympic Committee. She has been working for the last several years to ensure all is in readiness for the Canadian team when it arrives in Beijing. Another former board member, Anne Merklinger (Ottawa, ON), is the Director General of CanoeKayak Canada, and she will be in Beijing as the Press Attaché for the Sprint and Slalom CanoeKayak teams. She will also be the assistant team manager for the sprint team, and is excited about Canada’s athletes heading to the games. “For the first time in twenty years the Canadian Sprint CanoeKayak Team qualified crews in all twelve Olympic events. A phenomenal achievement in itself, qualifying boats for every event is a testament to the strength and depth of Canada’s paddling program.”
Another former board member, Guylaine Bernier (Montreal, QC), will serve as a technical official at both the Olympic Games and the Paralympic Games for the rowing competitions. At the Olympics, she has been assigned to be a Member of the Jury of Appeal and the FISA - International Rowing Federation Umpiring Commission Representative. The Jury supervises the work of the 18 international umpires and ensures a smooth technical operation of the event. Rowing will be contested at the Paralympics for the first time. Guylaine will be the President of the Jury and the FISA - International Rowing Federation Umpiring Commission Representative, overseeing all the installations and the operation of the event. She will also be part of giving an International Umpiring Seminar during the games to reconfirm the FISA umpiring licence of the jury members.
Current CAAWS Board member, Moira Lassen (Whitehorse, YT) will be attending her first Olympic Games as an International Technical Official (ITO) in the sport of weightlifting. She is the only technical official selected from Canada, and is only one of 7 qualified women of the 35 ITOs in the sport. She will proudly watch as her daughter Jeane competes for a medal on August 15th in the 75kg weight category. “Being a female in the male dominated sport of weightlifting is an amazing challenge and having faced thirteen years of those challenges I feel extremely prepared for the Beijing Olympic Games,” said Lassen.
Rounding out the CAAWS associated group is Barb MacDonald (Ottawa, ON) who has served as CAAWS’ Communications Consultant since 2001. She will be working with the Beijing Organizing Committee for the Olympic Games (BOCOG) assigned as an advisor to the media operations team at the National Indoor Stadium, which hosts Artistic Gymnastics, Trampoline and the finals of Team Handball. This will be her third Olympic Games working with the organizing committee to ensure smooth working conditions for the journalists who are covering the games.
Executive Director of CAAWS Karin Lofstrom is pleased to see so many Canadian women in leadership roles at these Games. “Canada has an international reputation as a country that develops and promotes women in sport leadership. I am pleased that all of these women who have played a significant role both within CAAWS, and also within their sport and professional activities will be outstanding representatives at the Games.”
The Beijing Olympic Games will take place August 8 – 24, 2008 and the Paralympic Games will run September 6-17, 2008.
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Contact: Karin Lofstrom
Executive Director
613-562-5667 ext. 6043
Debbie Pyne selected as ProMOTION Plus' President's Awards Recipient for 2008
Former P+ Board member, Deb Pyne was honoured on Mar.5th, 2008 at the annual Sport BC President's Awards as ProMOTION Plus' recipient for 2008. Deb served on our Board from 2002- 2007, as the Secretary, Communications Committee member as well as assisting on policy review and ad-hoc committees.
![]() L-R: Debbie Pyne and P+ Chair, Irene Schell
Debbie is a true advocate for women in sport, evident in her work. She was the Executive Director of the BC Ladies Golf Association for two years (2002 to 2004) and was one of the instrumental people in amalgamating the provincial ladies' and men's golf associations into the BC Golf Association. Debbie was the Managing Director of Player Development & Member Services for the BC Golf Association from 2004 to 2006 and is currently Managing Director of Player Development. Her passion for girls and women in sport comes through in all she does, including advocating for equal berths for girls and boys on the zone teams that attend the BC Summer Games. Debbie's passion for all she does, make her an excellent role model for everyone.
Congratulations Deb and thanks for all your hard work!
2007Margaret and Helen Callaghan inducted into the BC Sports Hall of Fame
December 2007
We are very proud to announce that 2007 In Her Footsteps honourees, Margaret and Helen Callaghan were chosen for induction into the BC Sports Hall of Fame for 2008. This is a great honour for the sisters and it will undoubtedly be appreciated by all of their friends and family. The induction ceremony will take place on May 29th, 2008 at the 40th Annual Banquet of Champions at the Vancouver Convention & Exhibition Centre.
It has been a banner year for female athletes at the Hall of Fame, with 4 out of the 11 individual inductees and 1 team being women. This is an exciting advancement for women in sport and we commend the selection committee for showing such foresight and leadership.
The women being inducted are: Helen Kelesi (tennis), Allison Sydor (mountain biking), Helen and Margaret Callaghan (baseball) and the 2006-2007 Kelly Scott Curling Team.
For more information visit: http://www.bcsportshalloffame.com
ProMOTION Plus Partners in the BC Olympic & Paralympic Youth Leadership Academy Sports Officials Canada and Fox 40 recognize Judith Tutty Congratulations Lilo Ljubisic!LJILJANA LJUBISIC RECEIVES ACADEMY’S DISABLED ATHLETE AWARDDAPHNE,
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April 12, 2005 Host Communities Chosen for 2008 and 2010 BC Games March 4, 2005 - IWF Abolishes Gender Testing
The IWF has abolished gender testing for women. Bylaw 5 was eradicated in it's entirety.
Please note the Junior World Championshipswill be the first international competition with this new rule. Please visit www.iwf.net for more information. |
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