ALPINE:

New-look Nakiska hosts GMC Canadian Championships starting Saturday

March 20, 2010 — Alpine Canada     ►Photo: Nakiska (Perry Thompson)

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As Nakiska Ski Area plays host to the top ski racers in Canada during the GMC Canadian Championships, there will be a few significant differences between the 2010 event and the alpine events of the 1988 Olympic Winter Games.

Nakiska Ski Area became a national training centre for Alpine Canada in 2008 after millions of dollars were spent jointly by the Alberta Government and operator Resorts of the Canadian Rockies to upgrade training facilities and add modern safety equipment.

"Nakiska Ski Area provides a key training area to Canada's alpine ski teams, particularly in November prior to the start of the World Cup season," said Alpine Canada president Gary Allan.

"This week of exciting 2010 GMC Canadian Championships races at Nakiska is an important part of our partnership with the goal of hosting future FIS, Nor-Am and World Cup technical events here," Allan said.

The GMC Canadian Championships, with 2010 Olympians including Erik Guay, Manuel Osborne-Paradis, Britt Janyk and Michael Janyk competing against the top provincial and development-level competition from across the country, are scheduled to get under way with the men's and women’s downhill on Monday. Downhill training begins Saturday for the event, which also hands out junior national titles as well as men's and womens GMC Cup overall winners.

The public is welcome to meet and get autographs from members of the Canadian Alpine Ski Team at the GMC vehicles and tent activation area at the base of Nakiska on Sunday, approximately 30 minutes after the end of the downhill training.

Nakiska operators working collaboratively with the Alberta Government made a number of enhancements at the ski area prior to 2008 that have benefitted both athlete training and overall guest experience.

These improvements included widening three training runs to 60 metres, extending the core training run Mapmaker by 650 metres, adding 11 kilometres of safety B-netting, enhanced snowmaking on Mapmaker from top to bottom, and an overall 40 percent increase in snowmaking capabilities.

Both the main daylodge and mid-mountain lodges have been upgraded, as well as the main base-area lift, the Silver Chair.

Nakiska also hosts Canadian provincial teams and clubs from Ontario, Quebec and British Columbia. Ski colleges from the United States are regular visitors, and factory, provincial and development teams from Japan, Australia and New Zealand are regular Nakiska early season visitors as well.

The Mapmaker and Whoop-up and Legacy slopes were all used by several countries to train prior to the 2010 Olympic Winter Games, and roughly 75 percent of the field competing at World Cup races in Lake Louise train at Nakiska beforehand.

Nakiska played host to the alpine events of the 1988 Olympic Winter Games, including two memorable bronze-medal performances by Karen Percy in the downhill and super-G.  SRC

2010 GMC Canadian Championships Schedule of Events

Nakiska Ski Area, March 20-27

Saturday, March 20
Men's & women’s downhill training run - Nakiska, AB
Sunday, March 21
Men's & women’s downhill training run - Nakiska, AB
Monday, March 22
Men's & women’s GMC Canadian Championship downhill - Nakiska, AB
Tuesday, March 23
Men's GMC Canadian Championship super-G - Nakiska, AB
Women’s GMC Canadian Championship super combined - Nakiska, AB
Wednesday, March 24
Men's GMC Canadian Championship super-combined - Nakiska, AB
Women’s GMC Canadian Championship super-G - Nakiska, AB
Thursday, March 25
Men's GMC Canadian Championship giant slalom - Nakiska, AB
Friday, March 26
Women’s GMC Canadian Championship giant slalom - Nakiska, AB
Saturday, March 27
Men's & women’s GMC Canadian Championship slalom - Nakiska, AB
March of Champions - Canada Olympic Park - Calgary, AB

*GMC Canadian Championships races are scheduled to start at 9 a.m. each day.