You couldn’t have asked for a better day for a game of shinny.
The sun shone down and the mercury rose above the freezing mark as a handful of HRM councillors, Canada Games organizers and Halifax Mooseheads took to the pavement outside city hall yesterday for a street hockey tournament.
The event, organized to mark the beginning of a one-year countdown to the 2011 Canada Winter Games in Halifax, drew about 150 people to Grand Parade to watch the proceedings.
“What better time for an event like this than during the Olympics, when the spotlight is on our country’s athletes,” said Andrea Young, communications co-ordinator for the 2011 Canada Games. “When the torch goes out in Vancouver, the country will look to Halifax for the next generation of Olympic athletes.”
After several rounds of play, “Team Crosby” eventually triumphed — taking home the gold as about 150 cheered on from the sidelines.
“It was a big team effort,” joked Mooseheads right-winger Travis Randell, proudly displaying his cardboard medal. “People were saying it was a controversial win, but I think there was good, honest hard work out there.”
Randell, 19, is a former Canada Games athlete himself, and said he was happy to volunteer for the event.
“I played in 2007 in the Yukon and it was a great experience, so to come out and support a day like this is great,” the Newfoundland and Labrador forward said.
Organizers recently launched a massive campaign to recruit up to 5,000 volunteers for the Canada Games, expected to be the largest sporting event in Halifax’s history. Young said they are hoping to engage as many Nova Scotians as possible in the festivities.
“The Games are in 2011, but long after that we want people to be getting active,” she said. “We want the whole province to really embrace the spirit of sport.”
