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The Beijing Winter Games and Winter Sports in Ottawa

Posted on February 17, 2022 - 5:21 pm by

Throughout February and March, Canadians will gather around the living room for the 2022 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games in Beijing, China. The Olympic Games were hosted from February 4-20 and the Paralympics will be hosted from March 4-13. Beijing is the first city in the world to host both the summer and winter Games.

Several local athletes from the Ottawa area have travelled to China to compete in the Games. With the continued support of local community sport organizations, athletes have been able to train in Ottawa with hopes of reaching their Olympic and Paralympic goals. Some of the familiar faces travelling to Beijing this winter include:

To learn more about local athletes competing in Beijing, visit the Ottawa Sports Pages’ Olympic Central.

Congratulations to local athlete Isabelle Weideman who captured Canada’s first medal of the Games, coming in 3rd place for the women’s 3000m speed skating event and then went on to win a silver medal in the women’s 5000m long track event.

The Olympic and Paralympics often result in boosts in participation and enthusiasm in local community sport organizations.  Calabogie Peaks Freestyle is a local ski club in Ottawa that has seen the benefits of local excitement surrounding the Beijing Winter Olympics – especially given Mikael Kingsbury’s  silver medal in men’s moguls.  We had the chance to speak with Calabogie Peaks leading up to their  Freestyle Ontario Timber Tour mogul skiing competition held from February 11 to 13.

While Mikael Kingsbury was winning the silver medal in Beijing, local athletes and volunteers were busy preparing to host and compete in the Freestyle Ontario Timber Tour.

“We’re super excited! We’ve been watching the Olympics – we watched the qualifiers and we saw the finals. Our athletes are competing next weekend and it was really awesome to see their idol athletes compete on the world stage. Now they can go take it and show them what’s up at Calabogie Peaks!” shared Program Director Myles Adams.

As athletes prepared for their own event, they watched Kingsbury compete in Beijing. “The thing I really like about moguls is the fun of watching the Olympians do it, like Mikael Kingsbury. He does it very well and I also want to try my best,” said Thomas Edey.

Calabogie Peaks Freestyle is one of many local organizations following the Games closely as they inspire and motivate participants to be their best and have fun along the way!

Winter Sports in Ottawa

Ottawa is fortunate to offer a wide variety of winter sports for all ages and abilities. Some of the winter sports programs throughout the city include:

  • Goulbourn Girls Hockey Association: The Goulbourn Girls Hockey Association aims to provide a safe, fun and engaged environment for girls to learn and play hockey. The Rockets offer programming for ages groups from U7 all the way to U18.
  • Nepean Skating Club: The Nepean Skating Club supports all skaters in realizing their skating goals by providing quality coaching, facilities, programming, and leadershi The Nepean Skating Club offers programming from learn to skate all the way to competitive skate.
  • Ottawa Pacers Speed Skating Club: The Ottawa Pacers offer programs for all ages and skill levels. The volunteer-run club offers the perfect balance of skilled instruction and social interaction. Skating programs begin in early September and run until the end of March.
  • West Ottawa Ringette: The West Ottawa Ringette Association offers a fun and challenging ringette experience for both regional and competitive players from ages 4 to 18. West Ottawa Ringette also offers free ‘Come Try Ringette’sessions throughout the year for everyone to get a feel for the sport.
  • Nakkertok Nordic: Nakkertok Nordic is Eastern Canada’s largest cross-country ski club located near Ottawa in Gatineau, QC. This year Nakkertok’s own Katherine Stewart-Jones is competing in the 2022 Beijing Olympics.