David Song

My grand tour began courtesy of Robb Zirnhelt, WSC’s track operations manager. The Kamloops native and his crew are responsible for grooming and curating the fastest sliding track on Earth. Built from 2005 to 2007, the WSC boasts 1.7 kilometres of icy runway linked to 55 kilometres of power distribution. Its iconic features challenge the world’s best athletes, from the hairpin Lueder’s Loop to the nerve-wracking 50/50 (so called because late American bobsledder Steve Holcomb remarked that one has a 50 per cent chance of wiping out in that section), and of course, the mighty Thunderbird Corner that racers must face at top speed just before the finish. When the entire beast is humming, a four-man bobsled and its crew weighing around 635 kilograms can reach 157 kilometres/hour down its length. It’s all thanks to gravity—and to the daily toil of people who rarely, if ever, see the spotlight.

Every now and again, a sports team is blessed by the presence of generational talent. The Chicago Bulls had Michael Jordan. The New England Patriots had Tom Brady. The University of Connecticut Huskies had Sue Bird and Diana Taurasi, among others. At the Horizon League level, the IUPUI Jaguars have Macee Williams of Veedersburg, Indiana.

“Female sports can be revenue generators.” In 2001, second-year head coach John Cook was inspired—or perhaps challenged—by the sellout streak that his university’s football program had accomplished. From 1962 to 2021 (across a pandemic) Nebraska football sold out 376 consecutive games: the longest such streak in America. Cook dared to ask his volleyball colleagues: why shouldn’t we try to do the same? The rest, they say, is history. From 2001 to 2019, the Huskers sold out 270 regular-season games in a row, putting together the lengthiest sellout streak in NCAA women’s athletics.

Nov. 2, 2019 is a day that Nick Statz will never forget. He stood alongside his fellow Calgary Dinos inside McMahon Stadium that evening, watching Manitoba Bisons quarterback Des Catellier set up in pistol formation. Moments earlier, Catellier had let fly a desperate Hail Mary pass, one that somehow caromed off defenders into the hands of Bisons receiver Trysten Dyce. The unlikely touchdown made the score 47–46, and with zeros on the clock, Manitoba was poised to force overtime by kicking an extra point. Instead, Bisons head coach Brian Dobie opted for the gutsier play, signalling a two-point convert attempt to win the game outright. Statz and his defensive teammates took the field once more, staring at one final chance to preserve Calgary’s playoff hopes.

When former Dinos volleyball player Adriel Goodman was growing up in Nakusp, British Columbia, her father made sure that sports were a part of her life. Jerome Goodman loved volleyball, and Adriel, the oldest of three girls, began passing a ball around virtually as soon as she was able to do so. It’s one of her earliest distinct father-daughter memories. Back then, if you told Goodman that her volleyball garb would one day hang from the rafters with the jersey of Canadian National Team veteran Dallas Soonias, she might have laughed you out of the room.

Two weeks ago I asked my friend Agatha Beier, a senior on the IUPUI Jaguars women's basketball team, about the way she and her teammates have mentally approached this unprecedented season. Her response stood out to me." Tomorrow isn't promised," said the 5'9" guard. "The games a month from now, we may not even be able to play. Right now is the most important." Beier's perspective reflects the class and maturity that I've come to expect from her as an individual, but also from the Lady Jags basketball program as a collective. And they know as well as anyone that tomorrow is never a guarantee.

For some golfers, their love affair with the sport starts early. Phil Mickelson was just 18 months old when his dad introduced him to the game. Michelle Wie swung a club for the first time at four years of age. Tiger Woods had carded 48 on nine holes and made it into Golf Digest before his sixth birthday. On the other end of the spectrum are the Diaz sisters, whose relationship with golf began, according to them, “by pure accident.”

A graduate of the University of South Carolina, Isabelle Khurshudyan honed her skills covering high school, Virginia Tech and University of Virginia sports. Next, she worked on the Capitals beat from 2015 to 2019 as an employee of The Washington Post. Despite having little prior knowledge of ice hockey, Khurshudyan quickly became an excellent hockey reporter, winning the 2018 Red Fisher Award for best NHL beat writer. That same year, Barry Trotz left the Washington Capitals.

If the IUPUI Jaguars are to roar this fall, they will have to wait a little longer than usual. After months of deliberation by two internal committees, the Horizon League issued a statement on July 16 announcing that the start of fall athletics competition would be pushed back to October 1 at the earliest. Member schools retain the ability to make decisions about how each of their teams will approach training and practice.

The Bethmuda Triangle is headed to Finland. After playing five years with the University of Calgary Dinos, Beth Vinnell will embark on the next phase of her volleyball career in Northern Europe. The Cochrane, Alberta native announced the signing of her first professional contract on June 8 over social media. If all goes according to plan, Vinnell is bound for Salo, Finland in August, becoming a member of LP Viesti.

As the incoming Third Vice President of APSE, Steve Hemphill understands the unique obstacles that small papers across the nation currently face. The Roanoke Times sports editor has been part of APSE since 1998, previously serving as chair of the Atlantic Coast region (2016-17) and chair of the Futures Committee. Few were initially aware of his eligibility for Third VP because the Roanoke Times had previously been considered a Category A or B paper due to its size. However, Roanoke now classifies as a smaller Category C paper, which made Hemphill eligible for Third VP.

They say life comes at you fast. After finishing the regular season with an 11–18 record, the ninth-seeded University of Calgary Dinos were prepared to host this year’s U Sports Women’s Volleyball Championship from Friday, Mar. 13 to Sunday, Mar. 15. For half a dozen fifth-year players, it was to be their farewell party, their last ride into the sunset. And for the entire team, it would have been a final chance at redemption.

The city of Indianapolis will host the Horizon League Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championships on March 9 and 10 when four women’s teams and four men’s teams will battle in Monday’s semifinal games with championship games on Tuesday at Indiana Farmers Coliseum.Since Indianapolis was announced as the host on January 24, 2019, the Horizon League has worked with the Indiana State Fair Commission to prepare for the tournament.

In his seventh season at Youngstown State University, head coach John Barnes has proven to be an invaluable asset for the Penguins women’s basketball program. Under his tutelage, the team has reached the postseason in four of the past six seasons and has an overall record of 110-99. From 1997-2003, Barnes was an assistant coach at Michigan Tech, the school he played for during his undergraduate years in 1991-95. There, he became reacquainted with Kevin Borseth, the man who coached Michigan Tech’s women’s team when Barnes played for the men’s team. Both are from Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, and are good friends.

The IUPUI Jaguars have had a phenomenal 2019-2020 campaign, with an overall record of 20-8 and a conference record of 14-3, including a near-perfect 11-1 at home in the Jungle. Yet, the Jags have a lot more than just star power. Macee Williams and her fellow starters do battle every week knowing that they are backed by a rock-solid unit off the bench: a unit that includes two veteran juniors. Agatha Beier and Morgan Allen know their roles well and have filled them superbly throughout their careers.

The Dinos women’s volleyball team got off to a rough start in 2019, winning just four of the 17 games they played before the new year. With half a dozen first-years joining the roster and two starting outside hitters — Kate Pexman and Hannah Tanasichuk — missing time with injury, the team initially struggled to find their rhythm. However, once the newer players began to amass said experience, things started to turn around.

On Saturday, Nov. 24, the University of Calgary Dinos football team ended a 24-year championship drought at the University of Laval, capturing their first Vanier Cup since 1995. MVP quarterback Adam Sinagra threw two touchdown passes, and a defence that had been clutch all year stepped up once more in a 27–13 triumph over the Montreal Carabins. It was the perfect ending for Sinagra and seven other fifth-year players, including Hunter Karl and Nick Statz — all of whom have now played their final game in a Dinos jersey.

As a sport, parkour is often misunderstood. The very word calls to mind brave daredevils executing flamboyant tricks in urban environments, wearing no safety equipment whatsoever. In the minds of many, parkour is synonymous with flashy, gymnastics-like techniques such as flips and twists. It is a misconception that many parkour athletes — known in the sport as traceurs — would like to dispel, including Calgary’s Zach McIver.

On any sports team, there are certain individuals who live in the spotlight. The head coach, the star player, the team captain. But it takes a village to make a team run smoothly, and for the Dinos football program, the most unsung of heroes is their equipment manager, John Carr. In addition to making sure that the Dinos have everything they need logistically, Carr is beloved and well-respected in the locker room. Rookies and veterans alike look up to him as a father figure who pushes them to succeed in all aspects of life.

One of many Canadians who excelled at Pyeongchang 2018, speed skater Ted Jan-Bloemen is a world record holder in both the 5000 and 10 000-metre races. Capturing silver in the former and gold in the latter at Pyeongchang, the Dutch-born Calgarian credits both the Netherlands and Canada for his development as an athlete and as a person.