Field Hockey Canada and head coach Louis Mendonca released on the names of the eighteen players who will make up Canada's National Women's Team at the FIH Champions Challenge II to be held in Kazan, Russia from 21-27 June.
The team includes a lot of youth with few veterans of the international scene. Fourteen of the athletes hail from British Columbia, with three from Ontario, and one from Prince Edward Island. Ten of the players have less than 10 caps (international games) on their resume.
ÔÇ£We have a young team right now but I'm really excited about the direction our program is heading and I think we have the potential to surprise a few teams in this tournament,ÔÇØ says leading cap holder Stephanie Jameson, of Vancouver, B.C. ÔÇ£It's a great opportunity to compete against countries that are ranked just above and below us, and to see how we stack up against them.ÔÇØ
National team novice Jessalyn Walkey, who will be competing in her first FIH-level event, relishes the chance to represent Canada. ÔÇ£The opportunity to see and experience the world while representing your country doing what you love is incredible,ÔÇØ says the native of Rockwood, Ontario. ÔÇ£It's one thing to train, but to stand before your flag, singing proudly, moments before putting your heart on the line for an international match, is a whole other world.ÔÇØ
This will be the first competition for the women since a disappointing fifth-place finish at the Pan American Cup last February in Bermuda where many of the athletes were experiencing a major international tournament for the first time. The last four months of the program have involved identification camps, the start of a new carding cycle, and lots of training.
ÔÇ£I think we are really excited to be playing in a tournament right now. We have great expectations of ourselves to improve on the execution of our overall team play,ÔÇØ says veteran Azelia Liu of Scarborough, Ontario. Liu will once again be back-stopping the team in goal.
The Champions Challenge II is an international field hockey competition sanctioned by the FIH that will be making its debut in 2009. The tournament is held every two years and is contested by the top eight teams not competing in the premier-level Champions Trophy or Champions Challenge I. The winner of the competition will be promoted to the Champions Challenge I in 2011.
Team Canada: Abigail Raye, Amanda Stone, Anna Kozniuk, Azelia Liu, Diana Roemer, Emily Kozniuk, Jessalyn Walkey, Kate Gillis, Katie Baker, Katie Rushton, Natalie Wise, Paige Norris, Poonam Sandhu, Shannon Elmitt, Stephanie Jameson, Stephanie Nesbitt, Thea Culley, Tyla Flexman.
Source: Field Hockey Canada
