FIELD HOCKEY CANADA SELECTS MEN’S TEAM FOR THE GLASGOW 2014 CANADIAN TEAM

Team opens tournament on July 24th with match vs New-Zealand

July 2, 2014 - Ottawa – Field Hockey Canada and Commonwealth Games Canada (CGC) today confirmed the athletes and coaches named to Team Canada Men for the XXth Commonwealth Games in Glasgow Scotland in July.

The Canadian men’s team are currently ranked 16th in the world and are working toward regaining their status in the top 12. The team will be anchored by Olympian Scott Tupper, a feared penalty-corner striker who currently plays professionally in Europe and led his Belgian club to the semi-finals of the European Hockey League. Tupper was named to the 2013 Pan American Elite Team, alongside two other Canadians, strikers Matt Guest and Mark Pearson.

“The field hockey competition is traditionally strong at the Commonwealth Games,” says Team Canada Chef de Mission, Chantal Petitclerc. “Six of the ten men’s teams in Glasgow also competed at this year’s world Cup. This bodes well for a very exciting field hockey tournament, and I look forward to supporting our men’s team on the pitch.”

The Canadian player with the most international Caps is Dave Jameson, a veteran of the two previous Commonwealth Games (Melbourne and Delhi). Two other players (Mark Pearson and Philip Wright ) will likewise appear in their third Commonwealth Games, but Coach Anthony Farry has also included many young players in the squad, with his sight firmly planted on the 2015 Pan American Games in Toronto where the Canadians need to win to earn their qualification for the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio.

“There is a great mix of experience and youth and we know this group is going to perform well for Canada,” says Men’s National Team head coach Anthony Farry. “Our biggest assets as a group are our unwavering ability to fight hard for each other and our belief that we can compete with the top nations.”

The Canadian Men will play in pool B with England (ranked 4th in the world), New Zealand (6th), Malaysia (13th) and Pan American rivals Trinidad & Tobago. They open their Glasgow campaign on Thursday July 24 vs. New Zealand.

“Our men enter the games with momentum and confidence,” says Field Hockey Canada CEO Jeff Sauvé. “

A team of 267 athletes and close to 100 coaches and support staff will be in Glasgow, Canada’s largest Team ever fielded for a non-home Games.  The entire Canadian Team will be officially announced by Commonwealth Games Canada in mid-July 2014.

“Congratulations to the players who will make up the Canadian men’s field hockey team at the Commonwealth Games,” said the Honourable Bal Gosal, Minister of State (Sport). “I look forward to seeing this team excel on the pitch in Glasgow, as our teams have done so often before.”

The Men’s Team nominated by Field Hockey Canada to Team Canada for the 2014 Commonwealth Games includes:

Name                                    Position/Caps           Hometown
David Carter                            Goalkeeper/85           Vancouver, BC
Taylor Curran                          Midfield/60                 North Vancouver, BC
Adam Froese                          Defender/81               Abbotsford, BC
Matthew Guest                       Forward/74                 Calgary, AB
Richard Hildreth                      Forward/118               Vancouver, BC
Gabriel Ho-Garcia                   Forward/29                 Burnaby, BC
David Jameson                       Defender/198              Vancouver, BC
Gordon Johnston                    Defender/41                Vancouver, BC
Benjamin Martin                     Defender/50                Vancouver, BC
Sukhpal Panesar                    Midfield/16                 Surrey, BC
Mark Pearson                        Midfield/150                Tsawwassen, BC
Keegan Pereira                      Midfield/78                  Ajax, ON
Iain Smythe                           Forward/77                 Vancouver, BC
Scott Tupper (Captain)            Defender/183              Vancouver BC
Paul Wharton                         Midfield/22                 Vancouver, BC
Philip Wright                          Forward/138               Vancouver, BC

Head Coach: Ian Anthony Farry
Assistant Coach: Paul Bundy
Team Manager Celia Plottel
Physiotherapist: Robert Dunlop
Video Analyst: Paul Mounter

The Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games will be held from July 23^rd to August 3^rd, 2014, and will be the largest ever multi-sport event held on Scottish soil.

ABOUT FIELD HOCKEY CANADA

Working in collaboration with a variety of partners, Field Hockey Canada is the national sport governing body responsible for the development, growth and promotion of field hockey in Canada. Through the Women's and Men's National programs, Field Hockey Canada selects, prepares and promotes Canada’s teams for international competitions including Continental Championships, World Championships, and major multi-sport games such as the Olympic Games, Pan American Games and Commonwealth Games. Approximately 15,000 Canadians participate in field hockey, which is currently played in more than 600 schools and 400 clubs across the country. Visit www.fieldhockey.ca for information.

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 CGC is to strengthen sport within Canada and throughout the Commonwealth by participating in the Commonwealth Games and by using sport as a development tool. Visit www.commonwealthgames.ca for information.
 

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For interview requests:

Shaheed Devji
Creative and Communications Manager
Field Hockey Canada
778 847 7424
sdevji@fieldhockey.ca

For additional information on the Glasgow 2014 Canadian Team or CGC:

Sylvie Bigras
Communications Chief
Team Canada - Glasgow 2014
613 298 1625
sylvie@magma.ca
@cgc_jcc #Glasgow2014