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The search for Olympic hopefuls in central Alberta

Mar 21, 2019 | 3:09 PM

Central Albertans have the chance once again this year to see if they have what it takes to be an Olympic athlete.

RBC Training Ground gives local athletes – no matter what sport or activity they are involved in – the chance to test their strength, speed, power and endurance in front of officials from Olympic sports looking for new talent.

This Sunday, March 24, officials will be at the Gary W. Harris Canada Games Centre at Red Deer College looking for local athletes with the raw talent that could make them well-suited for an Olympic sport.

Officials say the free, open talent discovery event is one of more than 30 local combines happening across the country in 2019 and is open free of charge to athletes between the ages of 14 and 25.

Talent scouts and officials from National Sports Organizations anticipated to be in attendance include Canada Snowboard, Speed Skating Athletics Canada, Canoe Kayak Canada, Cycling Canada, Rowing Canada, Rugby Canada and Freestyle Ski Canada – all searching for hidden gems and potential cross-over talent.

2018 Olympic Gold Medalist Brady Leman (Ski Cross) will also be on site to motivate and mentor participants.

According to officials, any athletes deemed to have Olympic potential will begin further testing (one-on-one) with specific sports, with the potential of being invited to the first-ever RBC Training Ground national final, which will bring together the top-100 high potential athletes discovered at various qualifiers across the country.

Based on the national final results (to be held in Calgary) up to 30 high performing athletes will be selected as RBC Future Olympians and receive funding and resources to pursue their Olympic dreams.

Last year 80 local athletes attended the Red Deer combine, 22 of which were discovered to have high performance potential.

Eleven of those were invited to do sport specific training.

Red Deer’s RBC Training Ground event will run from 9:00 a.m. until approximately 12:00 p.m.

To register, visit rbctrainingground.ca.

Since 2016, RBC Training Ground has tested 5,500 athletes at 71 free local events in 35 different communities across 10 provinces, and dedicated a total of $1.3 million in funding to support the more than 80 promising future Olympians found through the program.

(With files from RBC Training Ground & Stellick Marketing Communications)