Field Hockey Canada announces teams for Delhi 2010 Commonwealth Games
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
OTTAWA, August 17, 2010 – Field Hockey Canada and Commonwealth Games Canada today announced the 32 athletes who will represent Canada at the XIXth Commonwealth Games in Delhi, India this October.
The field hockey competition is traditionally strong at the Commonwealth Games. Seven of the ten men’s teams that qualified for Delhi also competed at this year’s World Cup, while five of the women’s teams will be competing at the World Cup in Argentina in early September.
The Canadian men’s team, which has climbed into the top ten in the recently released world rankings, will be led by two-time Olympians Ken Pereira (Unionville, ON) and Rob Short (Tsawwassen, BC), both of whom are heading into their fourth Commonwealth Games. The two veterans, playing professionally on the same club team in Holland, have also represented Canada in four Pan American Games, and will be heading back to India six months after the World Cup in Delhi.
The Canadian women’s team will count on the leadership of Stephanie Nesbitt (Vancouver, BC), who started her international career eight years ago at the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester, and Katie Baker (Argyle Shore, PEI), honored with a nomination to the 2009 Pan American Elite Team.
“I’ve been lucky to catch the women’s team in action several times over the last two summers and I was in Delhi during the men’s World Cup to watch Canada compete,” said Martha Deacon, Chef de Mission for Team Canada 2010. “The facility is absolutely spectacular and the level of competition for both the men and the women at the Commonwealth Games will be outstanding!”
“We’ve had significant turnover in our men's national team since the World Cup in March with five retiring players,” said Hari Kant, Men’s High Performance Director for Field Hockey Canada. “We also have new leadership with Robin D'Abreo being named Head Coach. The Commonwealth Games field includes many of the top 12 teams in the world and will provide our younger players with a perfect opportunity to perform against quality opposition and gain valuable experience towards our qualification for the 2012 Olympic Games.”
“The team selected is relatively young in terms of experience,” said Louis Mendonca, coach of the Canadian women’s team. “The Commonwealth Games will be a great testing ground for measuring present progress and preparing us for future important events such as the Pan American Games and Olympic Qualifier. We had some good results in a series of matches against India and Chile, but we now need to bring more consistency to our performance to be competitive against teams in the top ten.”
Men’s Team:
| Adam Froese | Abbotsford, BC |
| David Carter | Vancouver, BC |
| Matthew Guest | Vancouver, BC |
| Richard Hildreth | Vancouver, BC |
| David Jameson | Vancouver, BC |
| Antoni Kindler | Vancouver, BC |
| Mark Pearson | Vancouver, BC |
| Keegan Pereira | Ajax, ON |
| Ken Pereira | Unionville, ON |
| Rob Short | Tsawwassen, BC |
| Iain Smythe | Vancouver, BC |
| Hudson Stewart | Vancouver, BC |
| Sukhwinder (Gabbar) Singh | Surrey, BC |
| Scott Tupper | Vancouver, BC |
| Jesse Watson | North Vancouver, BC |
| Philip Wright | Vancouver, BC |
| Coach: Robin D’Abreo | Vancouver, BC |
| Assistant Coach: to be confirmed | |
| Manager: Andrew Schouten | Vancouver, BC |
| Video-Technician: Indy Sehmbi | Vancouver, BC |
The Canadian men’s team will open the competition on Tuesday, October 5, against South Africa before playing against England, Trinidad & Tobago, and New Zealand to wrap up the pool round.
Women’s Team:
| Abigail Raye | Kelowna, BC |
| Ali Lee | Victoria, BC |
| Amanda Stone | Richmond, BC |
| Anna Kozniuk | North Vancouver, BC |
| Azelia Liu | Scarborough, ON |
| Diana Roemer | Mill Bay, BC |
| Kate Gillis | Kingston, Ontario |
| Katie Baker | Argyle Shore, PEI |
| Katie Collison | Duncan, BC |
| Kristine Wishart | Hamilton, ON |
| Robyn Pendleton | Victoria, BC |
| Samantha Smith | North Vancouver, BC |
| Stephanie Jameson | Vancouver, BC |
| Stephanie Nesbitt | North Vancouver, BC |
| Thea Culley | Rossland, BC |
| Tyla Flexman | Vancouver, BC |
| Coach: Louis Mendonca | Thornhill, ON |
| Assistant Coach: Paul Bundy | Vancouver, BC |
| Manager: Sheena Scott | Vancouver, BC |
| Video technician: John DeSouza | Toronto, ON |
The Canadian women’s team will open the competition on Monday, October 4 against Malaysia, then will play pool games against England, Wales and New Zealand.
Interviews with individual athletes and coaches can be arranged by contacting Yan Huckendubler at yhucken@istar.ca.
The Delhi 2010 Commonwealth Games will be the world’s largest multi-sport competition this year, drawing more than 4,000 athletes from 71 nations and territories. For more information on Team Canada, visit www.commonwealthgames.ca.
About Field Hockey Canada
Field Hockey Canada (FHC) is the Canadian sport federation responsible, with their provincial partners, for the development and growth of field hockey in Canada. For more information, visit www.fieldhockey.ca.
About Commonwealth Games Canada
Commonwealth Games Canada (CGC) is the international franchise holder for the Commonwealth Games and Commonwealth movement in Canada, and an active, contributing member of the Canadian sport community. The mission of Commonwealth Games Canada is to strengthen sport within Canada and throughout the Commonwealth, by participating in the Commonwealth Games and by using sport as a development tool.
Derek Johnston
Commonwealth Games Canada Communications
(613) 837-3377
derek@face-value.ca
Ian Clark
Field Hockey Canada
(613) 521-8774
programs@fieldhockey.ca
