Pick a sport. Any sport.
That essentially was the theme in mid-September as the City of Red Deer turned the Collicut Centre into a sports smorgasbord for the community.
It was the first time Xplore a Sport has been held. The goal of hosting so many different sporting organizations in one spot was a simple one.
“It’s about kids just having the opportunity to come in an uninhibited environment where they could touch a ski, a biathlon rifle, pick up a pickle ball paddle, step on a court and not have to worry about any kind of rules, regulations,” said Rob Meckling with the city’s Sports and Recreation department. “They could just come with mom and dad and just step out there and enjoy it.”
The setup included 25 booths representing local sporting groups along with a display from the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame, a key figure in preserving sports history in our province.
People could get information on freestyle skiing, biathlon, soccer, pond hockey, cricket, fencing, gymnastics, judo, the Alberta Sports Development Centre and others in a one stop shopping atmosphere which seemed to work well.
“ I think we’re going to have a good set of evaluations coming out of this to determine what it is we need in order to make this bigger but still provide the same level of quality and service,” said Meckling.
The day also included a couple of local athletes who got their start at the grassroots level and went on to achieve a high standard in their sport.
Zina Kocher, a biathlon athlete who has been a member of Canada’s Winter Olympics team and Elliott Moskowy who hit the world stage as a member of the Canadian Special Olympics team in swimming this past summer.
Both were on hand to speak to anyone about their sport,their experiences and give back to the community they call home, said Meckling.
For residents, the day provided a chance to walk away armed with more information about a certain sport and for the groups represented on the day, it opened a door of communication with the public, said Meckling.
“They have an opportunity to tell the story about what they do and what they offer to the community.”
Meckling said parents also got a bit of an education on just what sort of commitment their child might have to make as well as who important volunteers are that make these sports run.
“In my experience working in sport administration, the sports in this country ride on the backs of volunteers,” he said. “ You cannot provide good sport opportunities for kids unless you have full cooperation of the community, the business community, the municipality and certainly the parents willing to commit their time and energy and resources.”
Meckling says this exhibition of what the city has to offer underlines the fact we are not a city with just solid soccer, football, baseball and hockey programs.
“ We’re representing all 67 sports in this country that are recognized by Sport Canada and we have a presence with all of them to varying degrees.”
